Birmingham Meet-Up: 25 October 2026

Was Jason first?

It would only be fitting if the demi-god of the Thread Summaries was the one to push open the doors of the Figure of Eight on Birmingham's main entertainment drag, Broad Street.

Or was it Tom........................................................................................................ Allin?

(See podcast.)

Ironically, the man who had travelled the furthest, all the way from Devon, arrived to take part in the great unknown that is a Steelers game on foreign soil.

Whoever got there first didn't really matter. Somewhere in between, Nigel Milner found both of them and quickly united the trio over the first pints of the afternoon.

Michael Hart was next to arrive, fresh from the North West and already volunteering for food duty. Speaking of duty, Lee Riley appeared shortly afterwards looking like he'd come to fix the pipes at The Box. Armed with his trusty shoulder bag, containing the ever-popular Super Bowl Trophy from last year's Birmingham meet-up, he was only missing a pair of overalls and a pencil behind his ear.

No one else made it to the pre-pub gathering.

Jason watched his prepaid deposit disappear faster than the balance in his bank account.

Still, onward we marched.

The Box

The Box. Our spiritual home.

The home of the Official UK Steelers Fan Club.

And here we were again. Watching the Steelers play on foreign soil while standing firmly on Brummie ground.

So relaxed is The Box these days that we didn't even have a host directing us to our space.

Just Rhys Smith.

Armed with a beret, a smile and the air of a man who'd accidentally become Head of Hospitality, Rhys welcomed the old guard back into familiar surroundings.

Then came the steady stream of arrivals.

New faces drifted in.

Old friends reappeared.

Handshakes became conversations.

Conversations became laughter.

The family got bigger once again.

Time Is A Funny Thing

Time is a funny thing.

This time last year, Maxine and Kyle were minding their own business while waiting for the Steelers to kick off in Dublin.

Then disaster struck.

Or, depending on your point of view, salvation.

The inferno that is Lee Matthews, Phil Bridge, Lee Riley and Jason descended upon their peaceful existence, accompanied by twenty-odd equally enthusiastic Steelers fans.

It took the Lee of Matthews to finally break the ice.

They were invited over.

Told to join us.

Encouraged to become part of the chaos.

Fast forward one year.

One year of UK Steelers membership.

One beautiful baby girl.

Countless conversations.

And now they weren't guests anymore.

They were family.

A Real-Life Yinzer

Rachel made her entrance.

An actual, real-life, in-the-flesh Yinzer.

Jason was briefly starstruck and immediately switched into host mode, making sure Rachel and her partner were settled and enjoying themselves.

After all, you can't let Pittsburgh royalty wander around unattended.

Steelers Football Happens

Eventually.

The game started.

The inevitable nail-biting commenced.

Michael delivered his trademark apocalyptic commentary from somewhere between despair and prophecy.

Baby Steeler had grievances of her own.

Literal grievances.

Lee Riley began another reign of alcoholic terror, this time focused almost entirely on an unsuspecting Nigel Milner.

Meanwhile, Jason understood the game and approached his Blue Moons with veteran caution.

His eating strategy was considerably less disciplined.

The destruction of a lamb kebab was the stuff of overhungry pensioner legend.

Timing Is Everything

The moment of the night?

Rhys.

Armed with his encyclopaedic football knowledge, he began questioning the value of DK Metcalf.

At precisely the same moment, Metcalf hauled in what felt like the catch of the game.

The words had barely left Rhys's mouth.

The timing was magnificent.

The football gods clearly have a sense of humour.

OH....

"Who's that sat in the middle over there?"

"The one that looks like a Mad Max Fury Road extra?  no idea"

"You don't recognise them Jason"

"nope"

Man approached.   

Justin. From Justinskams Strickland on FB.  And more importantly from UK Steelers FB Group.

Exale.  He wasn't going to flamethrower us in a fit of Steelers loss rage. 

Small Worlds

Woody Boon arrived, giving Jason the chance to meet him properly for the first time.

Or so he thought.

It quickly transpired that they'd already occupied the same patch of Midlands turf at Birmingham Bulls practice.

The Midlands, it turns out, is an astonishingly small world.

Six In A Row

As the game rolled on, the Steelers defence continued its familiar routine.

Bend.

Bend some more.

Threaten to break.

Refuse to break.

And just hold on long enough.

That left Chris Boswell, our beloved Boz in The Box, to do what Chris Boswell usually does.

Win football games.

Another Steelers victory.

Six straight wins witnessed by the group at Birmingham meet-ups.

An unbeaten streak that refuses to die.

Rhys walked over at full time and very nonchalantly ate a croissant in his beret as if he had lived in the 33rd  arrondissement his whole life

Then dropped the trademark Aaron Rodgers tush push celly

Meanwhile, Lee Riley extended a winning streak of his own as he escorted the increasingly vulnerable Nigel Milner towards The Wellington at approximately 8:30pm.

What happened next is a story for another thread.