Two heavyweight favourites of this season’s Championship lock horns in an opening day blockbuster. Birmingham City have flexed their financial muscle, but can they overcome a strong, favourited Ipswich Town side on their return to the second tier?
EFL Championship
Our Three Predictions for Birmingham City vs Ipswich Town
- First Prediction: Both teams to score – Yes 3/4
- Second Prediction: Sammie Szmodics to score 23/10
- Third Prediction: Half time result – Draw 1/1
First Prediction for Birmingham City vs Ipswich Town – Both teams to score – Yes 3/4
Both Birmingham and Ipswich will boast excellent attacking players following this summer’s turnover in squads. The Tractor Boys will hope George Hirst can lead the line imperiously at this level, after Liam Delap secured a move to Chelsea during the Club World Cup transfer window. Hirst has bagged two goals in pre-season, with successful strikes against Aberdeen and Ligue 1’s Auxerre. Jack Clarke has looked back to his Sunderland best during pre-season, with a number of crosses against Auxerre nearly resulting in plenty of early assists for last season’s number 47. Against Charlton Athletic, Clarke scored in the 51st minute during a 2-1 victory.
With a 70% success rate – of both teams finding the net in the last 20 meetings between the two Championship sides – Birmingham will meet Ipswich as record-breaking League One champions and full of optimism. Kieran McKenna’s side have been somewhat mentally depleted following their Premier League relegation, but the view of an immediate return is their intention. The Blues have had a mixed-bag of pre-season results, but a full-strength side took down Nottingham Forest in a 1-0 victory on Saturday. Record signing Jay Stansfield notched a 23rd-minute winner with Demarai Gray and Keshi Anderson running the channels. Whether Birmingham choose to deploy Kyogo Furuhashi or the former Fulham striker as their number nine, the likelihood is that Chris Davies’ side will score at least one. Alternatively, both can work in tandem.
Second Prediction for Birmingham City vs Ipswich Town – Sammie Szmodics to score 23/10
As the Championship Player of the Season in 2023/24, Szmodics was electrifying for Blackburn Rovers, arguably single-handedly keeping them in the division. A 27-goal second division season saw Szmodics feature in 44 games and a revisit to this fine form might be on the cards under McKenna in the Championship. Ipswich were largely disappointing in the Premier League, but the 29-year-old managed to score four times and will be hungry to prove himself as a Tractor Boy. Birmingham have a strengthened backline from their League One title victory, but if Szmodics is on form then his ‘fixtureproof’ nature could see the attacking midfielder bag on his Championship return.
Szmodics could even be deployed upfront if Hirst and Ali Al Hamadi aren’t immediately utilised. However, the likelihood of a starring role in attacking midfield is far more likely. The former Peterborough United favourite will have creative threats like Clarke and Nathan Broadhead or Chiedozie Ogbene (if Omari Hutchinson moves away from the club and the Welshman deters Wrexham) either side of him.
Third Prediction for Birmingham City vs Ipswich Town – Half time result – Draw 1/1
With the strength of both sides heading into this match, and an unclear favourite in the opening day fixture, the chances of an edgy start and a draw by half time both seem reasonably likely. New recruits in both camps could see a nullification of each other’s impressive assets at second-tier level. As both teams will want to adopt a possession-based dominance over the Championship season, the two similar playing styles may cancel each other out. The one important factor is that Ipswich have learnt how to stay in games as a counter-attacking side for an entire season prior to this weekend, whereas Birmingham have grown used to sheer dominance in near-enough every game last season.
This fixture in particular, pins two promotion – and title – hopefuls against each other. Inevitably, this means that three points would be excellent for both, but a draw may suffice for the two sides despite their sky-high ambitions for the season and beyond. Ipswich’s growing injury list and Davies’ inexperience at this level may be another factor that sees a cancellation of each other’s quality during the opening 45.
Best Odds for Birmingham Town vs Ipswich Town
| Bookmaker | Birmingham City | Draw | Ipswich Town |
| MyriadPlay | 7/5 | 21/10 | 7/4 |
| Gentleman Jim | 6/4 | 21/10 | 17/10 |
| Betarno | 29/20 | 85/40 | 17/10 |
Full Preview of the Game – Last Results and Head-to-Head
Birmingham have been impressive in pre-season, but have also shown some slight complacency. Ultimately, the Blues will not be bothered about these results as it is merely a reflection of their fitness levels. As with most professional sides, losses to lower league teams usually do not worry the manager. On the other hand, a 1-0 victory against Forest may inspire those selected in the lineup to continue the same performance levels against Ipswich.
The Tractor Boys have won three pre-season games in impressive fashion, rotating their squad in each. Ipswich beat Aberdeen 3-1, Charlton 2-1 and ended their friendly season with a 3-0 thrashing of Auxerre. Albeit, the scoreline was generous to McKenna’s side in the latter-most fixture, they have highlighted their clear attacking threat.
In the last 18 professional meetings, Ipswich have won on more occasions than Birmingham, with six victories against the Blues. But City have won four times, with their last head-to-head three points coming in March 2018. The last time Birmingham hosted Ipswich, in February 2024, a 2-2 draw saw Marcus Harness’ name twice on the scoresheet late on to cancel out Jay Stansfield’s 13th-minute strike and an own goal by Cameron Burgess. The likelihood is that Stansfield will be the only starting player from this meeting to feature from the get-go against Ipswich this time round.
In a late transfer saga, former Middlesbrough striker Chuba Akpom’s move to the Blues has reportedly been hijacked by Ipswich. An element of ‘bad blood’ may be lingering in the atmosphere on a tense occasion if either side can pull of this coup.
Confrontation
Where to watch Birmingham City vs Ipswich Town?
Where can I watch this Championship opener, either on TV or in-person?
- Location: St. Andrews @ Knighthead Park, Birmingham
- Date: Friday 8th August 2025
- Channel: Live across Sky Sports channels and via Sky Sports+
Probable Lineups for Birmingham City vs Ipswich Town
What sorts of lineups can we expect for this exciting meeting?
Predicted Birmingham City Lineup:
- Lineup: J. Beadle, A. Cochrane, P. Neumann, C. Klarer, B. Osayi-Samuel, T. Doyle, T. Iwata, K. Anderson, K. Furuhashi, D. Gray, J. Stansfield
- Coach: Chris Davies
- Suspended/Injured: S-H. Paik, K. Fujimoto, L. Dykes
Predicted Ipswich Town Lineup:
- Lineup: A. Palmer, A. Young, J. Greaves, D. O’Shea, B. Johnson, A. Matusiwa, J. Taylor, J. Clarke, S. Szmodics, C. Ogbene, G. Hirst
- Coach: Kieran McKenna
- Suspended/Injured: A, Muric, L. Davis, C. Townsend, H. Clarke, W. Burns, J. Philogene
Media Centre – News about Birmingham City vs Ipswich Town
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