Welcome to BirminghamWorld’s football coverage

I remember the exact moment I decided that I was going to be a sports journalist.

It was during the back-end of the 2017 summer transfer window and I was working in car sales at the time. Instead of doing what I was supposed to be doing - which wasn’t unusual, I was sat scrolling through Twitter refreshing different journalists’ profiles to see if any new signings had been made at my club.

Football is my one true passion in life. It always has been and it always will be. Like many fans of this game, everything else in my world has always taken a bit of a backseat to it. I’ve always loved the thought of working within it but I’d got to a stage in my life where it felt like a pipedream more than anything else.

During this one particular procrastination session, though, I had the realisation - an epiphany, if you will. ‘How good would it be to be on the other end of this?’ ‘How good would it be if you were the one delivering the big breaking news for football fans?’

Before the working day had drawn to a close, I’d written a personal statement and applied to study sports journalism at five different universities.

Impulsive? Probably. But that’s me in a nutshell and it’s the best decision I’ve ever made because here we are, just over four years to the day and I’m heading up the football coverage for this new site, a site with great ambition - BirminghamWorld.

We’ve launched with pieces surrounding predominantly Aston Villa & Birmingham City but as we move forward over the coming months, I’ll also be making myself known at the Hawthorns and Molineux.

The Birmingham patch is a big one with four top, top teams so I know I’ve got a job on trying to keep you all happy - but it’s a challenge I’m more than up for.

In terms of content, I’m here to deliver honest and detailed stories with a lot less click-bait and a lot more of what you want to see.

And with that said, I want you to get in touch with me on Twitter @benaramsdale and tell me exactly what it is that you want to see. Do you want to jump on a post-match video call and air your feelings with your fellow fans? Let’s do it. Do you want to write an opinion piece based around your club? Go for it.

This site is going to be catered around you and I’ll get you involved as much as I can. Whether you’re Villa, Blues, Baggies or Wolves - your opinion matters.

Football without fans over the last two years has been bloody rubbish to put it bluntly so now that we’re all back - let’s get your ideas and opinions heard.

I’m dedicated to being the best possible journalist I can be for this patch and I’m honoured to have been trusted to cover one that boasts such big clubs.

Last but certainly not least, welcome to BirminghamWorld. I can’t wait to interact with as many of you as possible over the coming months.