New Everton Stadium Handover Completed
Today at 08:02 PM
A momentous occasion in the history of Everton Football Club
With the takeover of Everton Football Club by The Friedkin Group now complete, late on Friday night there was more positive news for the club.
Everton announced the handover of the new Everton Stadium, with architects Laing O'Rourke relinquishing control of the project with the conclusion of the construction phase.
The next stage of getting the stadium ready for the 2025-26 season is the six-month fit-out phase to furnish the development. This will include interior design specialists, tradesmen and women and audio-visual engineers completing the stadium's many bars, restaurants and experiences, as well as retail spaces.
Everton's Executive Chairman Marc Watts said:
"I feel privileged to be here today to be part of the handover of this magnificent stadium in this stunning, unrivalled location. It is an illustrious moment in the history of Everton and marks a new era for the Club on many levels. The stadium will play a key role in supporting our commercial vision for the Club – hosting events and activities all-year round - but first and foremost, I have no doubt that it will be a venue that every Evertonian will be proud to call home."
Three test events will take place in 2025 before the Club stages its first competitive fixture at the stadium at the start of the 2025/26 season. More information on how Evertonians can qualify for and access the test events will be released in the New Year.
Everton Interim CEO Colin Chong added:
"Our thanks go to Laing O'Rourke, their workforce and extensive supply chain, along with the many people who have helped bring our vision to fruition.
"Everton's passionate supporters deserve immense praise for investing fully in this journey, right from the initial consultation phases and throughout the three-and-a-half-year build process.
"Construction has not been without its challenges, but we have remained on schedule despite a worldwide pandemic and a war in Ukraine, which threatened to affect the delivery of materials and destabilised financial markets.
"That is a testament to everyone involved and I am sure I speak for all our staff and supporters by saying we are absolutely delighted to take control of a site which will soon become one the best football stadiums in world football.
"I often describe our new home as Liverpool's Fourth Grace, and I truly believe this magnificent stadium is one that the whole city can be proud of."
The handover came to fruition three-and-a-half-years after the initiation of the project, on schedule from when the Club formally took possession of the site on July 26th, 2021.
Off the pitch, Everton seem headed for a phase of growth and ambition. However, the on-pitch product has still been severely lacking especially this season with more creativity and skill added to the squad over the summer.
Should the Toffees go through another rough spell over the extended holiday fixtures, then expect the knives to be sharpened for Sean Dyche as it's been widely reported that the Friedkins are in the market for a bigger 'name'.
