Nottingham Forest banners appear on Trent Bridge ahead of Reds' first European home game in 30 years

The Reds face Danish side FC Midtjylland on Thursday, October 2 - and more preparation work to welcome visitors is under way

Banners have been put up on Trent Bridge outside the City Ground in preparation for Nottingham Forest’s first home European fixture in almost 30 years.

The Reds face Danish side FC Midtjylland on Thursday, October 2.

And, with just two days to go before kick-off, red posters bearing the Forest crest and the words “Europe Again!” have appeared on lampposts within the stadium’s vicinity.

It’s after Nottingham city Councillor and Forest fan Steve Battlemuch asked those with the jurisdiction to mark the occasion.

Midtjylland are expected to bring around 200 away fans to the game.

Councillor Battlemuch, who represents Wollaton West for Labour, told Nottinghamshire Live last Wednesday, September 23, that he’d been “chasing (visual improvements to the area) quite a lot with the council for the past few weeks”.

Now, he’s welcomed the appearance of the flags, with a post on X saying: “Eventually things are happening. More to come.”

He told Nottinghamshire Live: “I welcome the fact that we’re starting to make the area look and feel like the entrance to a ground that’s hosting European competition for the first time in 30 years.”

Forest have at least three home fixtures in the league stage of the Europa League this season, which, after Midtjylland on Thursday, will see them welcome fans from Portugal, Sweden and Hungary over the next few months, for games against Porto, Malmo and Ferencvaros respectively.

Councillor Battlemuch said he thought more could, should and hopefully would be done to improve the city and the area surrounding the ground before those games.

“I think we need to make the area from Nottingham Station to the City Ground look and feel like a city of culture, like a welcoming area that visitors want to come back to. We want them to think: ‘This is a lovely city. I want to come back here and explore it a bit more’.

“The banners are one thing, but really we want a tidy up of the area – the bridge looking a lot nicer, the weeds picking up – just an overall feeling of a city that’s welcoming to the outside world.”

In May, he called for the anti-terror barriers on Trent Bridge to either be removed, painted or draped in Forest-related colours.

This week he told Nottinghamshire Live that discussions were ‘still ongoing’ about those, and that decorations for them were on the council’s ‘wishlist’, but that they would not be removed.

He said: “We could have slogans on there, or it could be painted, or covered in plastic. We could get a graffiti artist to do some work on there. I think sometimes we overthink these things rather than just getting on with it, but hopefully something will be done sooner rather than later.”

Forest’s first home game comes after their 2-2 draw with Sevilla last week, which Cllr Battlemuch, a lifelong supporter of the club, flew to Spain for.

He says his club can take notes from what he experienced there.

“It was a very welcoming affair from a very beatiful city and I want to sort of replicate that for our city,” he said.

“We can’t replicate the sunshine and cheap beer, but it was generally just a sense from the people in the bars, hotels and shopping areas that they are used to having regular visitors to their football grounds.

“With us, with football, people tend to come up for the day on the train, go to the match and go home again. A European trip might be two or three days or maybe even longer.”

Councillor Battlemuch told the LDRS that he was privy to plans for activities or ways to welcome away fans at Old Market Square, at the train station and at East Midlands Airport.

He also alluded to rumoured plans for “signage around London Road to make the area a bit more football-friendly”.

He added: “There’s the test cricket match against New Zealand next year and the Ashes the year after that, too, which people will come to for longer.

“I just think that we’ve got an opportunity to really showcase not just the city but the surrounding areas. There’s a lot of potential tourist attractions in and around Nottingham and Nottinghamshire.”

On Monday, September 29, East Midlands Mayor Claire Ward posted a video from the City Ground, designed as a welcome to away fans to the area.

She said: “We’re absolutely delighted to welcome Europa League football to Nottingham. It’s a fantastic opportunity to showcase our city and region to the world.

“I encourage everyone visiting to enjoy the matches safely, explore our incredible cultural heritage, and take advantage of the amazing places to eat, shop, and relax.

“Bring your families, make memories, and come back soon, we’ll be ready to welcome you.”

The 54-second clip was posted to social media ahead of the game on Thursday.

“I think that’s what we need to be saying to people,” added Councillor Battlemuch in response.

“Come to Nottingham, you’ll be welcome. We can’t necessarily guarantee sunshine, but we can guarantee you a warm welcome!”

Nottingham City Council said it had been working with Forest to mark the club’s return to Europe.

The club paid for the banners to be made and their installation, a spokesperson confirmed.

Council Leader Neghat Khan, said: “I’m really proud that Forest are back where they belong playing in a European competition. It’s a huge boost for the club, for Nottingham and the local economy. We look forward to welcoming visitors to our great city from across Europe over the coming weeks.”

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