Club Profile
Liverpool
Mighty Liverpool dominated the English game from the 1960s through the 1980s, earning them a worldwide following. They are now back at the top, and newly-expanded Anfield remains a must-see stop on a groundhopping tour—if you can get in.
LOCATION: Liverpool is two and a half hours from London’s Euston station and just under an hour from Manchester Piccadilly.
CONTACT: liverpoolfc.com, #YNWA
NICKNAMES: The Reds
History
If you are younger than 40, you don’t remember when Liverpool was winning everything. You probably do remember the Alex Ferguson years at Manchester United, so just imagine if after he retired, another manager came along and did even better, then a former player became manager and won some more. That was Liverpool from the mid-1960s to 1990. But…
If you are younger than 40, you don’t remember when Liverpool was winning everything. You probably do remember the Alex Ferguson years at Manchester United, so just imagine if after he retired, another manager came along and did even better, then a former player became manager and won some more. That was Liverpool from the mid-1960s to 1990.
But they almost didn’t exist. Everton FC started its life at Anfield but left over a rent dispute in 1892. (They moved barely a mile away, across Stanley Park.) So Anfield’s owner, John Houlding, started a new club, Liverpool FC. They lost the FA Cup final in 1914 and won the league in 1922 and 1923, but no more trophies came until they won the league again in 1947. By 1961 they were in the Second Division.
But a couple of years before that, they had hired a manager named Bill Shankly. He used the club’s boot room as a legendary planning room for him and his assistants, and from that room emerged a dynasty. From 1964 to 1990, Liverpool under Shankly—succeeded by his assistants Bob Paisley and Joe Fagan, and later by player Kenny Dalglish—won 13 league titles, four European titles (today’s Champions League), four FA Cups, four League Cups, two UEFA Cups, and the UEFA Super Cup. From 1972 to 1990 they finished first or second in the league all but one season, winning it 11 times.
It was Shankly who mentioned to the press one day that his wife’s favorite song was a Rodgers and Hammerstein piece called “You’ll Never Walk Alone” and it would be nice if the fans were to sing it. It is quite possibly now the most famous football anthem in the world. The version you’ll hear starting the crowd at the stadium is by Gerry and the Pacemakers, a Liverpool band.
Those years were not all good, however. Liverpool’s fans were also involved in two of the most infamous stadium disasters in history. In 1985 some of them attacked Juventus fans at a European Cup final at Heysel Stadium in Brussels, causing a wall to collapse and 39-nine people, mostly Italians, to die. This resulted in all English clubs being banned from Europe for five years (and Liverpool for a sixth). Then, at a 1989 FA Cup semifinal at Hillsborough Stadium in Sheffield, 96 Liverpool fans were crushed to death when police mistakes led to massive overcrowding in their end of the stadium. The authorities blamed it on the fans and covered up the reality for decades. No one has ever gone to jail for it, but police forces agreed to a financial settlement with families in 2021. Liverpool fans still sing “Justice for the 96” at almost every game.
Since those memorable years, they have won four FA and six League Cups—including both in 2022—and they bagged another European title in 2005 after a memorable comeback from being 3–0 down at a final in Istanbul. In 2018 they made an unexpected run to yet another Champions League final, their ninth, and lost in the final to Real Madrid. The following year they finished second in the league by one point in an epic title race with Manchester City but won the Champions League, beating Tottenham in the final for their sixth European crown.
In 2020 they won the league “at a canter” and in 2022 lost the league to City by a point and the Champions League final to Real Madrid by a goal. In 2023 they did slip from their usual incredible form, finishing fifth in the league and failing to qualify for the Champions League. Last season they won the League for a record-tying (with United) 20th time.
2024–25 SEASON: Premier League Champions, 4th Round FA Cup, League Cup runners-up, UEFA Champions League Round of 16
2025–26 SEASON: Premier League (top flight since 1962), UEFA Champions League
Rivalries
Everton, of course, is a rival. The Merseyside derby, named for the local river, has had more players sent off than any other Premier League game, even though in the stands it’s known as the Friendly derby. They have played more than 230 times since 1894. But most Liverpool fans will tell you they hate Man United more. For one thing, the…
Everton, of course, is a rival. The Merseyside derby, named for the local river, has had more players sent off than any other Premier League game, even though in the stands it’s known as the Friendly derby. They have played more than 230 times since 1894.
But most Liverpool fans will tell you they hate Man United more. For one thing, the Merseyside derby hasn’t been truly competitive for years, but Manchester and Liverpool hate each other for reasons going back to the Industrial Revolution and probably further. (This is England, after all.) United’s period of dominance came right after Liverpool’s and was highlighted by Ferguson saying he was going to “knock Liverpool right off their fucking perch.” And no player has switched from one team to the other since 1964!
Women's Team
Liverpool FC Women are in the Women’s Super League. Home games are at the (believe it or not) Totally Wicked Stadium in St. Helens, east of
Liverpool FC Women are in the Women’s Super League. Home games are at the (believe it or not) Totally Wicked Stadium in St. Helens, east of town.
Songs
“You’ll Never Walk Alone,” which comes before each game and occasionally during it, is certainly one of the most famous songs in world soccer. But it’s not their only one by a long shot. They have adapted an Irish folk song, “The Fields of Athenry,” into “The Fields of Anfield Road” with lyrics about LFC legends. There are more than a few about…
“You’ll Never Walk Alone,” which comes before each game and occasionally during it, is certainly one of the most famous songs in world soccer. But it’s not their only one by a long shot. They have adapted an Irish folk song, “The Fields of Athenry,” into “The Fields of Anfield Road” with lyrics about LFC legends. There are more than a few about all their titles, plus “Ooooh I am a Liverpudlian,” and one that says, “We’re not racist, we only hate Mancs.” They also take credit for introducing the song “Allez Allez Allez,” to England.
Stadium
Anfield is one of the palaces of English football, and to their credit, Liverpool in their ambition have not replaced it or ruined it with renovations. Capacity is 61,276 in four tightly packed stands. The most famous is the Spion Kop, one of many around the country named for a hill made famous in the Boer War in South Africa. This stand once…
Anfield is one of the palaces of English football, and to their credit, Liverpool in their ambition have not replaced it or ruined it with renovations. Capacity is 61,276 in four tightly packed stands. The most famous is the Spion Kop, one of many around the country named for a hill made famous in the Boer War in South Africa. This stand once held as many as 30,000 people on a single terrace, but in its current all-seater format still holds 12,390 singing, flag-waving supporters. It is often spoken of by commentators as a single entity, as in “The Kop clapped for a returning player.”
Away fans will be in the lower level of the Anfield Road Stand, opposite the Kop; it was expanded for last season. Outside the stadium is a ring of statues and gates as well as a memorial shrine to the 97 lost at Hillsborough.
TOURS: It’s £23 for a self-guided tour with audio and £50 to follow around a legend, which is recommended. There are even limited game-day tours. All include the museum, which you can also do by itself for £12.
Going to a Game at Anfield
GETTING THERE: Getting to Anfield from the main Lime Street station is pretty simple. Right outside the station you will see a sprawling bus stop area, and one of the first stops will be labeled as the Football Special. It should be bus 17 or 26. There will be stewards hanging around, and they will either sell you a ticket or show you the nearby…
GETTING THERE: Getting to Anfield from the main Lime Street station is pretty simple. Right outside the station you will see a sprawling bus stop area, and one of the first stops will be labeled as the Football Special. It should be bus 17 or 26. There will be stewards hanging around, and they will either sell you a ticket or show you the nearby office where you can get one. Might as well get a return (round-trip) ticket, although some people choose to walk back afterward, such is the traffic.
You can also take a Merseyrail Northern line train from Lime Street to Sandhills station and catch the, yes, Soccerbus from there. Last year you could get a combo train/bus ticket for £3 at Lime Street, so just ask them there.
Or you can just take a taxi, which should be around £10.
PUBS: There are quite a few pubs right around the ground, and they will all be packed. The Albert, right outside, is a shrine to the club, with posters and scarves and banners covering every space. The Park, right across the street, is less decorated but no less crowded and loud; same for the Twelfth Man just down the road past the Albert. The Arkles, just a few minutes away, is near two other good options: the Kop End and the Church, which is in fact in an old church. The designated away-fans pub, last we heard, was the Flat Iron down Walton Breck Road. There is a large Fan Zone outside the stadium as well.
GRUB: Liverpudlians are known, in addition to that wonderful term, as Scousers. It sounds like a putdown, but in fact Scouse is the local dialect, which was named for a stew of lamb or beef with potatoes and other vegetables—typical exciting traditional English food.
A bit of quick internet research for good Scouse options turned up a café called Maggie May’s in the center and a pub called Baltic Fleet down on the water. The Ship and Mitre, also in the center, is said to have good scouse and the biggest selection of beers in town. Clearly, more research is required.
Up by the ground it’s mostly standard fare, except that in the Fan Zone there are some local food trucks with better-looking options than usual. Two cafes very near the stadium offer scouse pies among other options: Georgie Porgy and the more popular (judging by the queues) Homebaked across the street. (Thanks to Andrew of Because Football for some notes here.)
AROUND TOWN: The waterfront area is great for a walk around, in particular the Albert Dock. It was remade after its industrial heyday with food, drink, shopping, and museums like the Maritime Museum and Tate Liverpool. Liverpool also has the second biggest Chinatown in the world after San Francisco.
If it’s Liverpool FC you dig, you should check out the Shankly Family Experience at the Shankly Hotel, run by Bill’s grandchildren. They offer tours of the city and their own memorabilia collection.
Otherwise, it seems to be all about The Beatles, who, of course, started in Liverpool. There are numerous tour companies in town that do Beatles tours among many other kinds of tours.
Liverpool Tickets
As you might imagine, tickets are difficult. To begin with, the normal channels of buying a ticket from the club are not open to you unless you’ve been buying them for years, and if you’re reading this, we assume you haven’t been. This means you will need, at the very minimum, one membership (£24 for international) for each ticket you will want. Even that probably won’t do it! It will get you into a lottery system for each game and the ticket resale area of their website, but most of those are snapped up before mortals like us can get at them.
This leaves us with third parties and official resellers. Third parties are abundant and illegal, so you are taking your chances there. Hospitality can come from the club or one of their direct and official sales agents such as Groundhopper Guides. Plan to spend hundreds of dollars per ticket, even if it’s a lowly Cup game, and up to really scary numbers if they’re playing Man United or another big shot. But they have (and we sell) some wonderful hospitality options.
Check below for more.
Photo Gallery
Videos
"You'll Never Walk Alone" at Anfield, Liverpool vs Everton in the FA Cup
Liverpool FC Hospitality - Code Lounge Block L12
Liverpool Pregame from Block CE6 at Anfield, Champions League vs Salzburg 2019
Liverpool Postgame from Block CE4 at Anfield
Everton equalize vs Liverpool at Anfield, FA Cup, January 2018
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