Bluebirds Unite: Cardiff fans walk remembers club's 'heritage'

Fans opposed to Cardiff City's change of shirt colour from blue to red have celebrated the club's heritage ahead of the first home Premier League match.

Organisers of the Bluebirds Unite walk from Cardiff Castle to the stadium said it was not a march against the club.

Malaysian owner Vincent Tan changed the club's colour to "lucky" red last year as part of his investment.

Cardiff enjoyed a stunning 3-2 first Premier League win over Manchester City.

Earlier, around 300 fans gathered for the start of event at Cardiff Castle, with numbers swelling en route.

Sian Branson from Bluebirds Unite said: "We are trying to do something positive. It's celebrating the history and heritage of the Welsh capital's football club.

"We can't understand the reason for the rebrand but we are not marching against the club or saying 'Tan Out'.

"It's the first game in the Premier League and we are not being represented on the pitch as our club and we're trying to show what it means to us.

"Why should everything before last year be forgotten.

"We hope the owner will take notice and see it's a mistake and we can have it rectified for next season."

The walk started in Cardiff City centre two hours before kick off

Hundreds more joined in en route to the Cardiff City Stadium

Bluebirds Unite said they were not opposed to the club but hope the owners would take notice

The controversial rebrand to 'lucky' red is an attempt to gain popularity for the club in Asia

When the rebrand was announced in June 2012 the club owners said it 'will always be Cardiff City Football Club and its name and heart will never change'

While some fans have accepted the changes as the price of stability, others remain opposed

The protest was arranged to coincide with the club's first home match in the Premier League since promotion

'Why should everything before last year be forgotten?' asked Bluebirds Unite

Red and blue united - later Cardiff fans inside the stadium celebrated a 3-2 win over Manchester City

Tan first put in £6m at the club after being asked by his friend Dato Chan Tien Ghee, the former chairman of Cardiff City, around three years ago.

Initially he was in the background as an investor but after loaning the club more than £30m, he decided to play a far more active role when he saw Cardiff lose in the Championship play-offs at the end of the 2011-12 season.

His first move was to carry out the controversial rebrand in an attempt to gain popularity for the club in Asia.

It included making the bluebird emblem less prominent on the club crest and changing the home shirt colour from traditional blue to red.

Last month, Tan said: "If too many fans show that we are not welcome then maybe they will have a new owner but right now my experiences are that we are very welcome."

Cardiff won the Championship title last season and began their first season in the Premier League with a 2-0 defeat at West Ham United last weekend.

A campaign billboard near the ground, while a fan walks past in the club's red shirt