A particularly beautiful sunset? The Northern Lights? Stranger Things come to life? 

Birmingham witnessed a stunning pink sky on the evening of the 8 January, but despite social media speculation, the cause was less magical than some had perhaps imagined.

The display was, in actual fact, caused by LED lights being used on Birmingham City Football Club’s pitch.

Storm Goretti’s conditions enabled the lights to be reflected across the sky in this manner – in a BBC News article, weather presenter Simon King clarified that ‘atmospheric conditions with low cloud and even during snow, can make the sky a little more reflective’ – explaining why the vibrant display of colour could be seen in various parts of the city.

Birmingham City FC confirmed it was the culprit on X, captioning a photo of St Andrew’s stadium from that evening, ‘Pink sky at night, Blues delight’. 

The club also joked on Instagram: ‘Without knowing it and simply doing his job, Birmingham’s groundsman caused one of the most extraordinary atmospheric phenomena of early 2026’. 

LED lights aid the growth and health of grass at low temperatures in order to maintain high quality turf whilst saving energy, with stadiums such as Munich’s Allianz Arena and Eindhoven’s Philips Stadium also employing the technique.

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