Cultured Football Special
Farewell Goodison
As promised yesterday, I came across so many wonderful pieces about Goodison Park that I felt I didn’t have any option other then to come out with a special issue of Cultured Football focused exclusively on Everton leaving their grand old stadium.
Everton fans on the end of a Goodison era: ‘I’ll be thinking about my dad, my brothers, my son’
By Tom Jenkins for The Guardian
Let’s start with a real banger: this wonderful piece offers a poignant tapestry of memory, community, and ritual stitched together by the fans themselves. This isn’t just about bricks and seats, it’s about the life lived between them. From childhood snuck-in goals and three-generational seatmates to ashes scattered in sacred soil and blue Penguin biscuits flung in defiance of anything red, Evertonians speak of Goodison as family, identity, and sanctuary. Poet Paul Cookson captures it best: “This place forever in our heart… Our place – Goodison Park.”
Top Scorer? Most Away Wins? Everton’s Time at Goodison Park in Numbers Ahead of Premier League Farewell
By Ryan Benson for The Analyst
With over 2,300 top-division matches under its roof, Goodison has hosted more elite football than any other English ground; a cauldron of noise, quirks, and history since 1892. It’s seen seven monarchs, 120 Merseyside derbies, and an awful lot of Sunderland defeats (60 to be exact). That is a taster of the kind of stats in this numbers-laden send-off which charts the remarkable life of England’s most storied top-flight venue.
Everton FC braces for finale at 133-year-old Goodison Park before moving to a new home
By Kevin Baxter for the Los Angeles Times
The move to the state-of-the-art Everton Stadium at Bramley-Moore Dock may be practical—boasting a 52,888 capacity, sleek design, and revenue-generating suites—but for many fans, it’s an uneasy evolution. Baxter captures this tension with voices like fan board chair Dave Kelly, who admitted his first visit to the new ground felt like betrayal, and architect Dan Meis, who designed the new home with the soul of Goodison firmly in mind. Yet Everton aren’t abandoning their community—the Blue Mile—and the club's deeply rooted outreach in one of England’s poorest areas remains central. One chapter ends but Everton’s sense of place remains unshaken.
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Memories of Goodison, Told By The Goalkeepers Who Played There
By Richard Scott for Goalkeeper.com
A conversation with those who saw the Grand Old Lady from a view most fans never did: between the sticks. Current Everton ‘keeper Asmir Begović speaks of wanting to give the fans one last memory, while former rivals Brad Friedel and Pat Nash offer up tales tinged with grit, mischief, and admiration. And as Everton Women prepare to make Goodison their home, these memories serve not as a eulogy, but a reminder: the keeper’s view of this place is unforgettable, and now, the next generation gets to step in.
Goodbye Goodison
By Lee Martin for BBC Sport Extra
Another evocative farewell which captures the soul of Goodison Park through the voices of those who’ve lived its history. From Frank Keegan, whose family has supported Everton for five generations, to Rob Sawyer of the Everton Heritage Society, it weaves personal narratives with the stadium’s storied past. Goodison isn’t just bricks and mortar; it’s a tapestry of memories—fans stamping their feet like thunder, the towering presence of Dixie Dean, and the sacred rituals of matchday.
Every Saturday, Cultured Football brings you five great football articles you will enjoy reading. And you get a free copy of the book Master of the Azzurri when you join.