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Coming to Anfield? ... Do it soon!
ANFIELD
The home of LIVERPOOL FOOTBALL CLUB since 1892.
Official address: Liverpool Football Club, Anfield Road, Liverpool L4 0TH
Telephone: +44 (0) 151 263 2361
Ticket Line: 09068 121 584
Club Call: 09068 121 184
Anfield was originally the home ground of Liverpool’s most serious and deadly city rivals, Everton. A dispute over the rental on the ground caused a split amongst the board members of the tenants and a majority of Everton directors voted to move to Goodison Park just over half a mile away on the Walton side of Stanley Park. A new club, Liverpool FC, was instituted in 1892 by John Houlding the owner of Anfield, to take the place of the team that had moved and “the Reds” came into existence. After one season in the regional Lancashire League, Liverpool were invited to join the second division of the Football League.
Now, one hundred and ten years on, around the world, the name of LIVERPOOL FC is revered by all and synonymous with being one of the most successful football clubs ever, and certainly the most successful in English league football!
Since their formation Liverpool Football Club have been champions of England’s top division on no fewer than eighteen occasions. They have also gained promotion from the second tier as champions of the second division four times. They have not played outside the top division since 1961/2 when they were last promoted under the guidance of the legendary Bill Shankly.
The Football Association Challenge (FA) Cup has sat in the Anfield trophy cabinet on six occasions, most latterly won in Cardiff against Arsenal in May 2001, and the League Cup (in its various guises) has been won six times also. As the Worthington Cup this particular trophy was hoisted aloft twelve months last February as the first of the three “pots” the Reds were to eventually capture in that spectacular season.
Although it took the Reds until 1965 to achieve victory under the Wembley twin towers, after that they more than made up for that previous lack of success while victories were still possible at the famous old stadium. Now, sadly, it is in the throes of being demolished and potentially no firm promises of being rebuilt - bloody politics! During the 1970’s and 80’s the number of appearances that the Reds made in the north London venue for FA Cup, League Cup and Charity Shield matches plus a European Cup final success, was such that Liverpool fans dubbed Wembley as “Anfield South”.
In European competition Liverpool have no peers amongst English sides. The UEFA Cup was won in both 1973 and 1976. It was won again in the penultimate competitive match of the 2000/01 season to complete the trophy treble they had embarked upon with the Worthington Cup victory. The crème de la crème, the European Champions Cup, was gloriously brought home to Merseyside four times between 1977 and 1984. Liverpool also reached the ill fated “Heysel” final in 1985. In 1966, they reached the final of the now defunct Cup-Winners Cup but lost 1 – 2 after extra time to Borrussia Dortmund of West Germany.
Last season saw the Reds compete for the first time in the Champions League reaching the quarter final stage before losing over two legs to Beyer Leverkusen. The season wasn't entirely without silverware however as they collected the FA Charity Shield at Wembley when they defeated Manchester United in the annual curtain raiser to the Premiership season and then lifted the European Super Cup by beating European champs Bayern Munich 3-2 in a one-off game in Monaco.
HOW TO GET TO ANFIELD!
The Stadium lies to the north of the city centre in the district of Anfield, L4. To walk from the city centre to Anfield takes approximately 25–30 minutes but if you are not familiar with the route, that mode of transport is not recommended.
The area is served however, by frequent bus services from the city and other parts of the suburbs. Liverpool’s bus network will deposit you at the ground within 30 minutes of your start time no matter where you are within the city boundary, and usually by using no more than two buses!
Liverpool has a massive fleet of Black Cabs that can be hailed on the street or a myriad of Private Hire car companies who will pick you up from any given location. Taxi telephone numbers will be found by the payphone in most good pubs. The cost of a taxi ride to Anfield from the city varies between £5 and £6. A pound per head or thereabouts is not a bad option if there is a group of (yep!) five people!
The Merseyrail network of trains unfortunately is not the best option for travel to the ground with Kirkdale Station on the Northern Line the nearest point to Anfield and still well over a mile away! As a starting point from Southport or Kirkby in the north or Speke and Hunts Cross in the south however, the service is reasonable, but be prepared for a 15 minute walk or a taxi ride when arriving at Kirkdale. A "Park and Ride" Soccerbus service is available from Sandfield Station, also on the Merseyrail Northern Line.
Mainline train services terminate at Lime Street Station with Virgin Trains being the operator on the West Coast Main Line. Buses and taxis to Anfield are available at the station itself. If travelling by rail from the south and the train is scheduled to stop at Edge Hill, this is a better option than going on into Lime Street. Edge Hill station is a short bus ride (5 minutes on the number 27) from the ground.
Visiting supporters arriving by coach will normally be directed to Priory Road which is only 200 yards from the ground. All coaches are escorted away from Priory Road and back to the motorway network by Merseyside Police at the end of the game.
Travelling to Anfield by private car is not recommended unless you know your way around! The vast majority of local streets within a mile or so of the stadium are subject to a “Resident’s Only” parking scheme which is very strictly monitored by marauding Traffic Wardens. If ignored, it gets very expensive returning to your vehicle to find the inevitable parking ticket! Some off street parking is available in streets near to Townsend Lane, Breck Road or Oakfield Road. But, unless you know where they are, and importantly, can get there early enough to “bag” one of the limited spaces, finding a spec not subject to some form of restriction is very difficult. The best advice is try to arrive early enough to use the major “Football Car Park” on Stanley Park or leave your car outside the Resident’s parking zone and get a taxi to drop you off nearer to the ground!
By the way, the myth that parking your car in Liverpool is akin to committing hara-kiri is just that, a myth! Like any major city Liverpool has its problems with car theft, but the chances of your car being stolen or broken into in Liverpool are no worse than anywhere else and certainly less likely than equivalent metropolitan areas like Manchester, Birmingham, Newcastle, London and even Bristol! (Source: Home Office Crime Statistics).
In fact, contrary to the image dispensed by “professional scousers” and so called comedians, Liverpool is a low crime rate area! There are 43 police forces in England and Wales who submit crime figures and for 1998/99 and 1999/2000 Merseyside was very much “mid table” for crime. It is more likely that you will have your home burgled in Cambridgeshire or Herefordshire than on Merseyside for example, and all the major cities mentioned for car crime also rate far worse than Liverpool for violence and assaults! So there!!!
If you‘re coming to Anfield by car no matter what, from the South and East approach Liverpool via the M62 motorway. At the end of the M62 (the “Rocket” junction) join the Liverpool Ring Road (North) – known as Queens Drive - heading for "Bootle and all docks". The football car park (5 miles from the Rocket) is sign-posted all along the route to the ground.
From the North arrive via the M58 from the M6. At “Switch Island” at the end of the motorway, follow the A59 to Liverpool via Aintree. Note the famous Grand National Steeplechase course on the left as you pass through Aintree itself! This road brings you to the Walton district and Anfield is sign-posted from County Road. There are numerous excellent pubs on County Road, if you’re not the driver that is!
If you’re arriving from the West, you probably know your way very well because you will be arriving from the Wirral either by way of a “Ferry ‘cross the Mersey” (la la la la, la la lah! Oops, getting carried away!) or through one of the two Mersey tunnels. Anyway if using one of the tunnels, exit onto the infamous Scotland Road (A pub on every corner, but not a pub in the street! A famous Liverpool expression that relates to the fact that the dozens of pubs on Scotland Road all had their postal addresses as being in the adjacent side streets – so “a pub on every corner etc”) and follow the signs for Bootle, St Helens and Preston. Within a few hundred yards, directions to the ground and football car park are sign posted.
GENERAL INFORMATION
On match days, the city of Liverpool is buzzing. Liverpool FC has a fan base which is very cosmopolitan whilst still retaining a down to earth “Scouse” nature. Liverpool fans come in from all over the British Isles – many travel over from Belfast and Dublin, as well as down from Scotland or up from London, Cornwall, Bristol etc., There are also many from Scandinavia and northern Europe. The Reds have massive Fan Clubs in Norway and Denmark, plus admirers who travel from Germany, Belgium and Holland. Fans are also beginning to arrive from much further afield too with many from Japan and Asia coming on package deals. Hence Liverpool’s pre season tour of the far east (Singapore and Bangkok) to capitalise commercially on their popularity out there!
Visitors supporting the Reds opponents on the day are made welcome in the vast majority of pubs and clubs, although unfortunately, Man United fans tend to be given a bit of a rough time. They are advised, sadly, to take their pre-match refreshments just a little bit further out than everybody else!
Near to the ground, the Liverpool Supporters Club on Lower Breck Road is open to visitors on payment of a small entrance fee but the array of local hostelries in the vicinity of the ground give plenty of alternate choices for a decent pint. There are plenty of different brews on offer too, both hand pulled real ales and the usual keg beers and lagers.
A lot of travelling fans will probably know The Arkles as a welcoming watering hole, but as an opinion, the Flat Iron at the junction of Anfield Road and Walton Breck Road, is a nicer and more friendly pub. The Cabbage Hall, The George, The King Harry, The Albert and others will not turn you away!
The Sandon on Oakfield Road, in the early days of the ground, housed the club offices and changing rooms! The players would get their kit on in the pub then walk the couple of hundred yards down to the pitch!
All of these pubs are within a 5-10 minute stroll from the ground.
Some alcohol is available at the bars inside the ground, but it is expensive and served in plastic cups (Yuk!). Getting served is also a problem if the visitors section is filled to capacity which it probably will be for all games this season now that Coventry have joined Wimbledon outside the top flight! Only Southampton may have difficulty in disposing of their entire allocation.
Food is available everywhere around the ground, both inside and out, but tends to be mainly of the burger/hot dog/pizza type of stuff. For more decent food, stop off at one of the bigger pubs located on most “A” roads leading into the city or like the Jolly Miller or The Queens on Queens Drive. These serve the usual Pub Fayre, but it’s a damn site more healthy than the burgers etc. Fish and chip shops also abound on Breck Road, Walton Breck Road, and Anfield Road. As well as good old fish ‘n’ chips and pies, sausages etc, most serve Chinese take-away meals and/or kebabs too. Do avoid the burger trolley things that position themselves just outside the ground. Talk about salmonella on wheels!
At the ground, the visitors’ section is located on the main stand side of Anfield Road. Liverpool usually make an allocation of 3,100+ tickets for visitors and these are only available through the visiting club’s selling arrangements. Tickets for all other sections of the ground - and don’t forget, just about EVERY Liverpool home game is an “all ticket” sell-out - can be ordered one month in advance by ringing the ticket-line or by personal application to the Anfield Ticket Office on the day that selling arrangements are announced. Leave it any later and you WILL be disappointed!
Merseyside Police are responsible for policing Liverpool’s home games and the vast majority of officers at the ground are experienced men and women who perform football duty on a regular basis. This is particularly true of the officers on duty inside the ground. They have a reputation of being approachable and fair but can be firm if necessary. Like most Scousers, you will find that the Police personnel have a sense of humour too. They enjoy a bit of banter with visitors, but like most things, don’t go over the top.
Inside the ground, crowd control is the responsibility of Club Stewards. Liverpool are a conscientious club who adhere to a strict training programme for all stewards and do not accept poor practice from any employee. The club, like the police, will always listen to complaints or criticisms of their performance. Go to the main club offices if you need to make comment about the stewarding, or ask any police officer to contact the duty Football Inspector or Match Commander on your behalf if you need to make a complaint about the police. They WILL see you and will take any complaint seriously and act upon it.
Near to the Visitors’ section at Anfield the Hillsborough Memorial and “Eternal Flame” is set into the wall adjacent to the Shankly Gates. The respect for this memorial shown by supporters of YOUR club over the years has been much appreciated by all Liverpool supporters. THANK-YOU!
Inside the Shankly gates is a “match-day only” annexe of the club’s souvenir emporium! The main club “superstore” is in the Kop Stand on Walton Breck Road. The Kop end of the ground also houses the Bob Paisley memorial gates and the life-size bronze statue of the immortal Bill Shankly.
The Spion Kop Stand (the original "Spion Kop" is a hill in South Africa, the scene of a battle during the Boer War when it was defended by the Lancashire Regiment’s Liverpool Battalion wearing red jackets!) is one of the most famous structures at a football stadium anywhere in the world. Although now all-seater and vastly different to the old terraced Kop rebuilt following the Taylor Report, it still generates a fearsome volume of noise in support of the home team!
The Main Stand and Centenary Stands complete the ground. The Main Stand houses the club's offices and some executive banqueting facilities plus a voluminous trophy room and visitor centre. There are tours of the ground including the visitor centre available on most weekdays, but it advisable to book in advance for a place on this very popular attraction. Most corporate sponsors have suites and boxes in the Centenary Stand.
If you have never visited Anfield as a football supporter, either to support the Reds or a visiting side, then do it soon! It is not an exaggeration or an idle boast to say that it is genuinely one of the more inspiring football grounds to visit because of its history and Liverpool’s success over the years, and should be on the agenda for you to see and experience. It may be that within a year or two, Anfield may no longer exist as Liverpool FC have declared their intention of moving to a new site to build a ground that will have the capacity to house the numbers of fans that want to attend Liverpool games. So, once again, if you haven’t been yet … do it soon!
We look forward to welcoming you.
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10 May 08 
Bristol City Football Club