Birmingham and Ipswich get the 2025/26 Championship campaign up and running on Friday evening.
The Sky Sports cameras will be at St Andrew’s as the Blues begin their bid for back-to-back promotions.
As for Ipswich, the Tractor Boys are seeking an immediate return to the big time after a disappointing 2024-25 Premier League season.
Read on as NetBet previews the opening match of the Championship campaign, complete with football betting tips for all your betting needs.
And if your bet on Birmingham vs Ipswich is coming in with time still left to play in the match, our Cash Out feature allows you to collect potential winnings before the full-time whistle is blown by the referee.
Birmingham vs Ipswich Preview
Hosts Birmingham, who are famously co-owned by NFL icon Tom Brady, were simply too good for League One last season.
The Blues finished on 111 points, winning 34 of 46 matches and losing only three of those games.
So it is no surprise that Chris Davies’ side are among the pre-season favourites for promotion to the top flight, especially after bringing in some top-quality players this summer, namely ex-Celtic forward Kyogo Furuhashi, Tommy Doyle and Bright Osayi-Samuel.
Can the big-spending Blues match such lofty expectations? We will soon start to find out, although a match against Ipswich is certainly a difficult first test.
Kieran McKenna’s side flattered to deceive for the most part in the Premier League last season, but the manager still has quality options to call upon.
Of course, Liam Delap, Sam Morsy, Julio Enciso, Kalvin Phillips, Axel Tuanzebe and Cameron Burgess have all departed Portman Road this summer, so the XI will look quite a bit different on Friday night and indeed in 2025-26 as a whole.
One new player who could be a key addition for Ipswich is the vastly experienced and versatile Ashley Young, who recently joined on a free transfer. He will provide great support for full-backs Ben Johnson and Leif Davis over the course of a long Championship campaign.
Elsewhere, George Hirst, Jack Clarke and Omari Hutchinson should prove to be of vital importance to the Tractor Boys in 2025-26, providing all of them remain at the club past the end of the transfer window – which is certainly not guaranteed, especially in Hutchinson’s case!
Birmingham vs Ipswich Odds
*All odds are subject to change
Newly-promoted Birmingham are favourites to claim the win here at odds of 2.38. An Ipswich victory is priced at 2.85, while the draw is 3.19.
Birmingham vs Ipswich Betting Tips
Kyogo Furuhasi to score anytime @ 3.05
Birmingham’s attacking options look pretty stellar on paper, with Kyogo joining up with the likes of Jay Stansfield, Tyler Roberts, Demarai Gray and Lyndon Dykes. Lest we forget, the Japanese star was a huge hit at Celtic, where he netted 85 goals in 165 appearances. Still only 30, we are backing Kyogo to light up the Championship’s opening night after a tough spell at Rennes.
Sammie Szmodics to score anytime @ 3.60
After Delap and Enciso’s exits, Szmodics should become far more of a key player for Ipswich and McKenna. The Irishman featured in only 20 Premier League games last season, but expect him to be a mainstay in the XI this term. Szmodics has previously shone in the Championship too, with 39 goals in 118 appearances.
Ipswich to win and both teams to score @ 5.70
We expect a close and goal-filled game in Birmingham. In truth, it could go either way, but Ipswich’s recent experience in higher-quality divisions may prove crucial at such an early stage of the season.
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