Everton move sees another traditional stadium close
Everton’s proposed departure from Goodison Park will see one of the Premier League’s most traditional venues closed for business.
On Thursday, Everton took a significant step towards their goal of building a new stadium on the banks of the River Mersey after securing a deal to acquire land at Bramley Moore Dock.
West Ham’s move to the London Stadium ahead of this season continued a trend in recent years which has divided the Premier League neatly in half – 10 of the current 20 clubs have moved ground since the start of the Premier League era, nine in the last 20 years and Middlesbrough in 1995.
At the other end of the scale, Everton are one of eight to have been in their current homes for more than a century while Watford continue to redevelop the 95-year-old Vicarage Road and Crystal Palace, with 93 years in Selhurst Park, are also closing on three figures.
Premier League stadium facts
- West Ham’s was the first stadium move for 10 years, since Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium opened in 2006.
- Five teams – Swansea, Manchester City, Hull, Leicester and Southampton moved in the five years prior to that, and Stoke and Sunderland in 1997.
- Three current Premier League teams – Chelsea, Liverpool and Burnley – are still in their original ground. Burnley’s Turf Moor is the oldest Premier League ground, having opened in 1883.
- Goodison itself dates back to 1892, when they moved out of Anfield and were replaced by newly-formed Liverpool. Tottenham’s White Hart Lane is the other remaining 19th-century stadium.
- West Brom (1900), Manchester United and Bournemouth (both 1910) and Chelsea (formed in 1905) are the other teams to have occupied their current homes for more than 100 years.