Simon Jordan reveals ugly Birmingham City fan incident from Crystal Palace days | OneFootball

The former Eagles chairman hasn't forgotten one incident when visiting St. Andrew's

Former Crystal Palace chairman and current talkSPORT pundit, Simon Jordan, has recalled an incident which involved Birmingham City supporters and himself whilst weighing in on the ever-growing debate surrounding the antics of former Blues man, Krystian Bielik.

The Polish international was involved in a controversial altercation with a Portsmouth supporter during a 2-0 defeat for his new club, Cardiff City, at Fratton Park on Saturday afternoon, with many offering their verdict on what punishment could potentially come the way of the 28-year-old.

By contrast, Birmingham have started the Championship season in much greater form than Bielik's current employers, although it has now been over a year since the former Arsenal academy graduate departed St. Andrew's @ Knighthead Park for a second time, initially joining West Midlands rivals, West Bromwich Albion.

During his two stints at Blues, Bielik would have certainly witnessed a change of mood in B9, especially after Knighthead Capital Management's takeover in July 2023, where the American investment firm have worked tirelessly to improve the current matchday experience.

However, the atmosphere at St. Andrew's over the years has been viewed as one of the most hostile in the English game, which Jordan has testified to when speaking to Jim White and former Arsenal ace, Emmanuel Petit.

Simon Jordan recalls Birmingham City incident during Crystal Palace ownership

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Throughout the discussion on the aforementioned incident involving Bielik, which saw the young Portsmouth supporter involved initially ejected from the stands by stewards, Jordan debated where the line should be drawn in terms of what professional footballers should deal with in terms of insults and physical attacks.

He later revealed, in his eyes, how the incident could have been best avoided altogether, before revealing to the panel that he has been involved in some rather off-putting scenarios, largely in his spell as Palace chairman between 2000 and 2010.

"I had it specifically with my mother and a group of fans at Palace, who felt they could say exactly what they wanted to say to me about me, in front of me and my mother. I was waiting in their seat the following week to tell them they weren't coming in again," Jordan explained.

As well as remembering an incident involving supporters of Palace's local rivals, Charlton Athletic, the 58-year-old then added: “Birmingham fans covered me in spit and whatever else.”

Birmingham City and Simon Jordan have a long-standing off-pitch history

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Whilst such actions cannot be condoned, Jordan and Birmingham certainly have a long-standing history in terms of off-pitch sagas, with the first of those coming in 2001, which surrounded Steve Bruce's exit from Selhurst Park to St. Andrew's.

The Eagles, indeed, attempted to go to court after an attempted initial walkout from their former boss, who would eventually go on to guide Blues to the Premier League by defeating Norwich City in the 2002 Championship play-off final.

Less than four years later, Jordan issued a furious attack on David Sullivan and Karren Brady, with the former claiming that Birmingham had a £6.5m offer rejected for the services of their one-time forward, Andrew Johnson, before Sullivan also threatened to sue his counterpart.

"He seems to have criticised almost everyone in football. It strikes me he has a serious problem and needs to see an anger-management expert," said Sullivan.

Simon Jordan has recently praised Birmingham City's ambitions

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Despite his chequered past with Birmingham and the club's supporters, Jordan has certainly been impressed by Knighthead's own work in the boardroom in recent times.

As recently as April 2025, the businessman declared: “I would not be surprised if [Birmingham or Wrexham] ends up in the Premier League in the next two or three years.”

Since returning to the Championship last season, plenty of focus has been put on Chris Davies' side, who finished 10th last season despite two high-profile recruitment drives, but have started this season in a solid fashion despite reining in their spending power.

As such, they could be joining Jordan's former club in the top-flight in the coming seasons if their off-pitch ambitions are coupled with more consistency on the pitch.