Birmingham City Women’s sale to Knighthead-backed investors signals a shift as clubs across Europe ringfence their women’s teams for dedicated investment
Birmingham City Women FC have been sold to a consortium led by Knighthead Capital Management affiliate Shelby Companies Limited.
The deal, which will be completed this week, will see Shelby take a 97% stake in Birmingham City Women, with the remaining 3% going to a group of independent investors which includes former England international Karen Carney OBE and four-time tennis Grand Slam winner Kim Clijsters.
The acquisition separates the women’s club from the men’s team, a structural move becoming a growing trend across English football as clubs look to unlock dedicated investment in their women’s operations.
Backing women’s football
Birmingham has a longer history in the women’s game than many clubs of their size.
The club won the FA Cup in 2012 and has long been a developer of elite talent, with the likes of Jess Carter and Kerys Harrop among their list of former players. Carney herself came through the ranks at Birmingham before going on to earn 144 caps for England Women, and her involvement as an investor brings both credibility and commercial appeal to the project.
Kim Clijsters, the Belgian tennis great, adds more star power to the deal. She famously won the 2005 US Open as an unseeded player returning from maternity leave, and has built a substantial sporting business portfolio since retiring from the court, including co-ownership of a Major League Pickleball franchise.
Birmingham City FC Chief Executive Officer Jeremy Dale said: “Birmingham City has a strong heritage in the women’s game, competing at the highest levels and winning the FA Cup in 2012.
“It has developed outstanding talents like Karen Carney, Kerys Harrop and Jess Carter, who have represented the women’s game with distinction. To now have Karen, along with Kim Clijsters and several other prominent women business leaders as investors is a pivotal moment for the Club.”
Building towards a new home
The Birmingham deal is notable not only for its investor profile but for its ambitions to build a new dedicated women’s stadium, which would alone signal the seriousness of intent behind the project.
With Knighthead already committed to a broader regeneration of the Birmingham Sports Quarter through its ownership of the men’s club, the women’s facility would sit within a larger mixed-use development.
Whether that timeline proves achievable will depend on the club’s planning, funding, and on-pitch progress. As the deal currently stands, it suggests this may be a longer-term plan rather than an immediate development.
Part of a wider shift
Birmingham’s move is the latest in a series of structural separations between men’s and women’s clubs that have gathered pace over the past two years.
Chelsea Women underwent what Deloitte described as a “landmark transaction” in 2025, reportedly valuing the club at £200m, facilitated by a prior carve-out from the broader BlueCo corporate structure.
Aston Villa Women have followed a similar path, while across the continent clubs including Barcelona and Lyon have moved to ringfence their women’s operations to attract targeted sponsorship and investment.
There is a clear logic behind the separation, though. Women’s football often attracts a younger audience demographic, which commands its own sponsorship conversations.
Bundling women’s teams within the broader men’s club structure can obscure that value. As Deloitte’s Knowledge and Insights Lead Jennifer Haskel noted alongside the most recent report, the clubs climbing the rankings are those building dedicated commercial leads, ticketing teams, and leadership structures built specifically for the women’s game.
