Everton have now comfortably settled into their new home on the docks of the River Mersey. After 133 years at Goodison Park they finally completed the move from L4 to their glamorous new 52,000-seater stadium.
After four games, the blues remain unbeaten at home. A win on the opening day of the season was shortly followed by a routine victory against Mansfield in the Carabao Cup and then two draws against Aston Villa and West Ham.
In that time, the toffees have only conceded once, a fantastic strike by Jarrad Bowen in their last fixture which curled past Jordan Pickford at the far post. However, much of the talk following the conclusion of that match was less about the result and more about the atmosphere inside the ground.
Andy Jenkins, 63, from Wavertree said: “The move as a whole has been a positive. Obviously bigger crowds increase revenue, but it needs to grow on people. At the minute it feels soulless. It lacks the character or history that attributes a truly great ground”.
Goodison Park was a ground famed for its hostile crowd. Often noted by ex-pros as one of their least favourite places to visit. The combination of stands tightly packed around the pitch, and the loud voices of the 10,000 lining the Gwladys Street.
Maintaining the strong atmosphere was one of the biggest selling points for the club when moving venues. They constructed a 14,000-seater, two-tiered stand with a 34.9% gradient, just 0.1% below the legal limit. This makes it the steepest in the world with the aim creating a “blue wall” of fans which keeps sound bouncing around the stadium.
Yet, it’s a design which as of yet, many feel has failed to deliver. The opening day was loud, with fans excited to experience their new home. Since then, the general consensus has been the atmosphere has fallen.
Will Gordon, 20 from Prenton suggested: “I think the atmosphere has had an effect. At Goodison, when the crowd got going, it really lifted the team. I think back to the derby win or Palace comeback. But it’s been so much quieter so far this season. Games like Villa at home, I think if we were at Goodison with the Gwladys Street on form, we could have absolutely nicked a winner. The south stand just hasn’t got that intimidation factor yet”.
Another issue has been attendance at the ground. Despite online claims that every game bar Mansfield has been a sellout, there has been a noticeable number of empty seats scattered around the ground and a real struggle to sell hospitality tickets. This is likely due to an increase in prices and availability outweighing demand.
If Everton can overcome the teething issues it could become a commercial powerhouse, similar to Tottenham following a successful stadium move in 2019.
