Everton's story is now one of two Americans, both named Dan, and their contrasting relationships with Hill Dickinson Stadium. For 133 years, Goodison Park was synonymous with the club, but last summer Everton relocated two miles to the Mersey waterfront in Vauxhall. The new 52,769-capacity stadium, designed by Dan Meis, has enabled the Blues to play in front of their biggest regular crowds in history.
Meis: The Architect Who Became an Evertonian
Meis, born in Colorado and based near Los Angeles, now considers himself an Evertonian. He told the ECHO that he had never before encountered a fanbase so clearly in ownership of the club, adding: "I became infected by that, very early on it became clear I wasn’t just designing a building in Liverpool, I was designing a home for people who I now felt part of, like my family – it’s unique, without a doubt."
Meis's design, featuring brickwork sympathetic to the dockland surroundings and a shimmering barrel roof, has created what is described as the best football ground in the land. He contributed the foreword to a new book, On the Banks of the Royal Blue Mersey: Inside Everton’s First Season at the Dock, which includes an exclusive interview with him from his New York office.
Friedkin: The Owner Who Has Never Attended
In contrast, chairman Dan Friedkin, whose The Friedkin Group (TFG) completed its takeover of Everton from Farhad Moshiri 654 days ago, has never set foot inside the stadium or attended any Everton match, including three Premier League Summer Series fixtures in his native USA last year. Manager David Moyes has revealed that Friedkin has never even spoken to him.
Last October, Friedkin was playing golf in Scotland the day before Everton's dramatic 2-1 comeback victory over Crystal Palace, where Jack Grealish scored the first-ever stoppage-time winner at Hill Dickinson Stadium. Instead, he was en route to Rome for the European Football Clubs General Assembly, where he is on the executive committee. He has also been at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship with his son Ryan, an annual pilgrimage.
Financial Contrasts and Future Prospects
Meanwhile, Manchester City faced sanctions for disguising secret funding of more than £830 million with "sham contracts." Everton, with a trading profit this summer, have a squad of just 18 outfield players, including a solitary striker, right-back, and left-back. Reports of a search for new investors, alongside TFG's exploration of bringing an NHL franchise to Texas, suggest the Blues may be a distant second priority.
The £60 million additional revenue predicted from Hill Dickinson Stadium positions Everton to capitalise on any opening, but only with proper investment and leadership. As Meis told the ECHO on the Royal Blue podcast: "Never before had I come across a fanbase that was so clearly in ownership of the club, every bit, good and bad."
