| Clubname | Everton |
|---|---|
| Fullname | Everton Football Club |
| Current | 2010–11 Everton F.C. season |
| Nickname | The Toffees, The Blues, The School of Science, The People's Club |
| Motto | "We should've had a penalty" |
| Founded | 1878 as St Domingo's F.C. |
| Ground | Goodison Park Liverpool England |
| Capacity | 40,157 |
| Chairman | Bill Kenwright |
| Ceo | Robert Elstone |
| Manager | David Moyes |
| League | Premier League |
| Season | 2009–10 |
| Position | Premier League, 8th |
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| Leftarm1 | 2A3BB1|body1=2A3BB1|rightarm1=2A3BB1|shorts1=FFFFFF|socks1=FFFFFF |
| Pattern la2 | |pattern_b2=_EvertonA11|pattern_ra2=|pattern_sh2= |
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| Leftarm3 | FFFDD0|body3=FFFDD0|rightarm3=FFFDD0|shorts3=000040|socks3=000040 |
| Website | http://www.evertonfc.com/ |
Everton Football Club are a professional English Football league club from the city of Liverpool. The club competes in the Premier League, the highest level of English football. They have competed in the top division for a record 108 seasons, they have played more top-flight league games than any other English team and have won the League Championship nine times—the fourth highest of any team. Everton have remained in the top division since 1954, and were founder members of the Premier League in 1992.
Formed in 1878, Everton were founding members of The Football League in 1888 and won their first league championship two seasons later. Following four league titles and two FA Cup wins, Everton experienced a lull in the immediate post World War Two period until a revival in the 1960s, winning two league championships and an FA Cup. The mid-1980s represented their most recent period of success, with two League Championship successes, an FA Cup, and the 1985 European Cup Winners' Cup—their first continental trophy. The club's most recent major trophy was the 1995 FA Cup.
The club's supporters are known as Evertonians. Everton have a large fanbase and regularly attract high attendances, averaging over 36,000 people per game: 95% of stadium capacity. Everton have a notable rivalry with neighbours Liverpool F.C. and the two sides regularly contest the Merseyside Derby. Liverpool F.C. were formed in 1892 by a breakaway group consisting of Everton's former president and a few players. The dispute also resulted in Everton leaving Anfield, their home ground at the time. The club have been based at their current home ground, Goodison Park, since 1892. Plans to move to a new 50,000 seater expandable stadium in Kirkby on the Liverpool city border were blocked by a public enquiry in 2009.
The club's home colours have traditionally been royal blue and white, with notable footballers donning the Everton shirt. The most famous is Dixie Dean, who scored a record 60 league goals in the 1927–28 season. Since 2000, the club has annually recognised notable former players, nominating an "Everton Giant" at the beginning of each season.
The club was a founding member of the Football League in 1888–1889, winning their first League Championship title in the 1890–91 season. Everton won the FA Cup for the first time in 1906 and the League title again in 1914–15. The outbreak of the First World War in 1914 meant that football was interrupted while Everton were champions, something that would again occur in 1939.
It was not until 1927 that Everton's first sustained period of success began. In 1925 the club signed Dixie Dean who, in 1927–28, set the record for league goals in a single season with 60 goals in 39 league games, a record that still stands to this day. Dean helped Everton to achieve their third league title.
Everton were relegated to the Second Division two years later during internal turmoil at the club. However, the club was promoted at the first attempt scoring a record number of goals in the second division. On return to the top flight in 1931–32, Everton wasted no time in reaffirming their status and won a fourth League title at the first opportunity. Everton also won their second FA Cup in 1933 with a 3–0 win against Manchester City in the final. The era ended in 1938–39 with a fifth League title.
The outbreak of the Second World War saw the suspension of League football, and when official competition resumed in 1946 the Everton team had been split-up and paled in comparison to the pre-war club. Everton were relegated again in 1950–51 and did not return until 1953–54, when finishing as runners-up in their third season in the Second Division. The club have been a top flight presence ever since.
Everton's second successful era started when Harry Catterick was made manager in 1961. In 1962–63, his second season in charge, Everton won the League title and in 1966 the FA Cup followed with a 3–2 win over Sheffield Wednesday. Everton again reached the final in 1968, but this time were unable to overcome West Bromwich Albion at Wembley. Two seasons later in 1969–70, Everton won the League championship, nine points clear of nearest rivals Leeds United. During this period, Everton were the first English club to achieve five consecutive years in European competitions—seasons 1961–62 to 1966–67.
However, the success did not last; the team finished fourteenth, fifteenth, seventeenth and seventh in the following seasons. Harry Catterick retired but his successors failed to win any silverware for the remainder of the 1970s. Though the club mounted title challenges finishing fourth in 1974–75 under manager Billy Bingham, and under manager Gordon Lee, third in 1977–78 and fourth the following season. Manager Gordon Lee was sacked in 1981.
| 1985 European Cup Winners' Cup Final starting lineup. |
Howard Kendall took over as manager and guided Everton to their most successful era. Domestically, Everton won the FA Cup in 1984 and two league titles in 1984–85 and 1986–87 and the club's first and so far only European trophy when they won the European Cup Winners' Cup in the 1985 final
Having won both the league and Cup Winners Cup in 1985, Everton came very close to winning a treble, but lost to Manchester United in the FA Cup final. A fifteenth place finish the following season saw Royle resign towards the end of the campaign, to be temporarily replaced by club captain, Dave Watson. Howard Kendall was appointed Everton manager for the third time in 1997, but the appointment proved unsuccessful as Everton finished seventeenth in the Premiership; only avoiding relegation due to their superior goal difference over Bolton Wanderers. Former Rangers manager Walter Smith then took over from Kendall in the summer of 1998 but only managed three successive finishes in the bottom half of the table. The current manager, David Moyes, was his replacement and delivered Everton to a safe finish in fifteenth place. In 2002–03 Everton finished seventh, their highest finish since 1996. A fourth place finish in 2004–05, qualified Everton for the Champions League qualifying round. The team failed to make it through to the Champions League group stage and were then eliminated from the UEFA Cup. Everton qualified for the 2007–08 and 2008–09 UEFA Cup competitions and they were runners-up in the 2009 FA Cup Final.
Moyes has broken the club record for highest transfer fee paid on four occasions, signing James Beattie for £6 million in January 2005, Yakubu for £11.25 million in summer 2007, and Marouane Fellaini for £15 million in September 2008. It was under David Moyes's management that Wayne Rooney broke into the first team, before being sold to Manchester United for a club record fee of £27 million.
During the first decades of their history, Everton had several different kit colours. The team originally played in white and then blue and white stripes, but as new players arriving at the club wore their old team's shirts during matches, confusion soon ensued. It was decided that the shirts would be dyed black, both to save on expenses and to instill a more professional look. The result, however, appeared morbid so a scarlet sash was added.
When the club moved to Goodison Park in 1892, the colours were salmon pink and dark blue striped shirts with dark blue shorts then switching to ruby shirts with blue trim and dark blue shorts. The famous royal blue jerseys with white shorts were first used in the 1901–02 season. Everton's current kit manufacturers are Le Coq Sportif, who replaced Umbro from the 2009–10 season.
The club currently has two 'megastores', one located near to Goodison Park on Walton Lane named 'Everton One' and a store in the Liverpool One shopping complex, named 'Everton Two', giving the second store the address 'Everton Two, Liverpool One'.
The Toffee Lady tradition in which a girl walks around the perimeter of the pitch before the start of a game tossing free Everton Mints into the crowd symbolises the connection. Another possible reason is that there was a house named Ye Anciente Everton Toffee House in nearby Village Street, Everton, run by Ma Bushell. The toffee house was located near the Queen's Head hotel in which early club meetings took place.
Everton have had many other nicknames over the years. When the black kit was worn Everton were nicknamed "The Black Watch", after the famous army regiment. Since going blue in 1901, Everton have been given the simple nickname "The Blues". Everton's attractive style of play led to Steve Bloomer calling the team "scientific" in 1928, which is thought to have inspired the nickname "The School of Science". While the battling 1995 FA Cup winning side were known as "The Dogs of War". When David Moyes arrived as manager he proclaimed Everton as "The People's Club", which has been adopted as a semi-official club nickname.
Ever since those events, a fierce rivalry has existed between Everton and Liverpool, albeit one that is generally perceived as more respectful than many other derbies in English football. This was illustrated by a chain of red and blue scarves that were linked between the gates of both grounds across Stanley Park as a tribute to the Liverpool fans killed in the Hillsborough disaster.
Goodison Park, the first major football stadium to be built in England, was opened in 1892. Goodison Park has staged more top-flight football games than any other ground in the United Kingdom and was the only English club ground to host a semi-final at the 1966 FIFA World Cup. It was also the first English ground to have undersoil heating, the first to have two tiers on all sides.
The church grounds of St Luke the Evangelist are adjacent to the corner of the Main Stand and the Gwladys Street Stand.
On matchdays players walk out to the theme tune to Z-Cars, named Johnny Todd, a traditional Liverpool children's song collected in 1890 by Frank Kidson which tells the story of a sailor betrayed by his lover while away at sea.
Everton's reserves play at Halton Stadium in Widnes.
On 16 June 2006, it was announced that Everton had entered into talks with Knowsley Council and Tesco over the possibility of building a new 55,000 seat stadium, expandable to over 60,000, in Kirkby. The club took the unusual move of giving its supporters a say in the club's future by holding a ballot on the proposal, finding a split of 59% to 41% in favour. Opponents to the plan included other local councils concerned by the effect of a large Tesco store being built as part of the development, and a group of fans demanding that Everton should remain within the city boundaries of Liverpool. central government rejected the proposal. Local and regional politicians are attempting to put together an amended rescue plan. Liverpool City Council have called a meeting with Everton F.C. with a view to assess some suitable sites they have short listed within the city boundary.
The Football Association's bid for the 2018 or 2022 FIFA World Cup includes a bid from the city of Liverpool to host some games. Everton have stated that without a new stadium the club would not be able to host such matches. The majority of Everton's matchday support comes from the North West of England, primarily Merseyside and Cheshire. Everton also have many fans who travel from North Wales and Ireland. Everton also have many supporters' clubs worldwide, in places such as North America, Singapore, Norway, Lebanon, Thailand, and Australia. The official supporters club is Evertonia, and there are also several fanzines including When Skies are Grey and Speke from the Harbour, which are sold around Goodison Park on match days.
Everton regularly take large numbers away from home both domestically and in European fixtures. The club implements a loyalty points scheme offering the first opportunity to purchase away tickets to season ticket holders who have attended the most away matches. Everton often sell out the full allocation in away grounds and tickets sell particularly well for North West England away matches. In October 2009, Everton took 7,000 travelling fans to Benfica., their largest ever away crowd in Europe since the 1985 European Cup Winners' Cup Final.
Everton's biggest rivalry is with fellow Merseyside team Liverpool, against whom they contest the Merseyside derby. The Merseyside derby is usually a sell out fixture and tends to be an extremely stormy affair; it has had more red cards than any other fixture in Premiership history. The rivalry stems from Liverpool's formation after an internal dispute with Everton officials and the owners of Anfield, the ground Everton were using at the time. Religious differences have been cited as a division, with Everton usually placed on the Catholic side;
At the start of the 2003–04 season, as part of the club's official celebration of their 125th anniversary, supporters cast votes to determine the greatest ever Everton team.
* Neville Southall (1981–97) Gary Stevens (1982–89) Brian Labone (1958–71) Kevin Ratcliffe (1980–91) Ray Wilson (1964–69) Trevor Steven (1983–90) Alan Ball (1966–71) Peter Reid (1982–89) Kevin Sheedy (1982–92) Dixie Dean (1925–37) Graeme Sharp (1980–91)
;English Football Hall of Fame members A number of Everton players have been inducted into the English Football Hall of Fame: Dixie Dean (2002 inductee) Paul Gascoigne (2002 inductee) Alan Ball (2003 inductee) Tommy Lawton (2003 inductee) Gary Lineker (2003 inductee) Howard Kendall (2005 inductee) Peter Beardsley (2007 inductee) |name=beardsleynote|group=nb}} Mark Hughes (2007 inductee) Neville Southall (2008 inductee) Ray Wilson (2008 inductee) Joe Mercer (2009 inductee) Harry Catterick (2010 inductee)
;Football League 100 Legends The Football League 100 Legends is a list of "100 legendary football players" produced by The Football League in 1998, to celebrate the 100th season of League football. * Alan Ball Dixie Dean Paul Gascoigne Tommy Lawton Gary Lineker Joe Mercer Neville Southall Alex Young
The following managers have at least one honour with Everton:
{|class="wikitable" style="text-align: center;"
|-
!Manager!!Tenure
|-
|Dick Molyneux||1889–01
|-
|Will Cuff|| 1901–18
|-
|Tom McIntosh||1919–35
|-
|Theo Kelly||1936–48
|-
|Harry Catterick||1961–73
|-
|Howard Kendall||1981–87
1990–93
1997–98
|-
|Colin Harvey||1987–90
|-
|Joe Royle||1994–97
|}
World Soccer Magazine World Team of the Year
Neville Southall holds the record for the most Everton appearances, having played 751 first-team matches between 1981 and 1997, and previously held the record for the most league clean sheets during a season (15). During the 2008/09 season, this record was beaten by American goalkeeper Tim Howard (17). The late centre half and former captain Brian Labone comes second, having played 534 times. The longest serving player is Goalkeeper Ted Sagar who played for 23 years between 1929 and 1953, both sides of the Second World War, making a total of 495 appearances. The club's top goalscorer, with 383 goals in all competitions, is Dixie Dean; the second-highest goalscorer is Graeme Sharp with 159. Dean still holds the English national record of most goals in a season, with 60.
The record attendance for an Everton home match is 78,299 against Liverpool on 18 September 1948. Amazingly, there was only 1 injury at this game-Tom Fleetwood was hit on the head by a coin thrown from the crowd whilst he marched around the perimeter with St Edward's Orphanage Band, playing the cornet. Goodison Park, like all major English football grounds since the recommendations of the Taylor Report were implemented, is now an all-seater and only holds just over 40,000, meaning it is unlikely that this attendance record will ever be broken at Goodison. Canada's Ontario Soccer Association, and the Football Association of Thailand where they have a competition named the Chang-Everton cup which local schoolboys compete for. The club also have a football academy in Limassol, Cyprus and a partnership agreement with American club Pittsburgh Riverhounds. Since 2006, Everton have played an annual friendly with , a team with strong ties to manager David Moyes.
The club also owned and operated a professional basketball team, by the name of Everton Tigers, who compete in the elite British Basketball League. The team was launched in the summer of 2007 as part of the clubs' Community programme, and play their home games at the Greenbank Sports Academy. The team was an amalgam of the Toxteth Tigers community youth programme which started in 1968. The team quickly became one of the most successful in the league winning the BBL Cup in 2009 and the play offs in 2010. However Everton withdrew funding before the 2010/11 season and the team was re launched as the Mersey Tigers.
Everton also have links with Chilean team Everton de Viña del Mar who were named after the English club. On 4 August 2010, the two Evertons played each other in a friendly named the Copa Hermandad at Goodison Park to mark the centenary of the Chilean team, an occasion organised by The Ruleteros Society, a society founded to promote connections between the two clubs. Other Evertons exist in Rosario in Colonia Department, Uruguay, La Plata, and Río Cuarto in Argentina, Elk Grove, California in the United States, and in Cork, Ireland.
The 1997 television movie The Fix dramatised the true story of a match fixing scandal in which the club's recent newly signed wing half, Tony Kay, played by Jason Isaacs is implicated in having helped to throw a match between his previous club Sheffield Wednesday and Ipswich Town. The majority of the story is set during Everton's 1962/3 League Championship winning season with then manager Harry Catterick played by Colin Welland
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