Liverpool - Football Club

Bill Shankly

The most successful football club in British history. Liverpool FC are once again on the rise, with Houllier's team following in the footsteps of Shankly, Paisley and Dalglish' Anfield greats before them.

You can read here about the team of '89 who played at Hillsborough on that day in April, the club's honours list and a brief history of the legendary area, Anfield.

There are also extensive lists of links to other Liverpool sites.

Fanzines - the supporters voice

The true independent voice of the ordinary supporter. We highlight Liverpool 'zine 'Through The Wind and Rain' - always a staunch supporter of the HJC and a voice that has kept alive and published articles on Hillsborough throuout the last 12 years.

Quick Find - Contact Us

The Hillsborough Justice Campaign
PO Box 1089
178 Walton Breck Road
Liverpool
L69 4WR
Tel / fax : 0151 2605262

email: hjcshop@tiscali.co.uk

History of Liverpool Football Club 1892-2001

Originally, Anfield was the home of Everton Football Club who began playing there in 1884. In 1892 a row over the rent led to the majority of members storming out in protest and moving across Stanley Park to build Goodison. Those who remained in Anfield decided to set up a club of their own - and so Liverpool Football Club was born.

On January 24th 1900, there was a battle in the South African township of Natal, which led to appalling loss of life, especially amongst many Liverpool people. The battle became known as the battle of the Spion Kop. The battle was one of the many disasters at the Boer War and ironically, the battle need never have happened.

In 1960, as Liverpool clinched their 2nd league title, Anfield was reconstructed with the Kop becoming a massive uncovered terraced area holding some 20,000 supporters. The name Spion Kop was coined by a local reporter and many felt it was a fitting memorial for all those poor Liverpudlians who fell at the battle of the Spion Kop.

The Kop and Anfield remained largely unchanged and the 1920's and 1930's saw football become the nation's number one sport. A roof was built on the Kop in 1928 and in the 1930's Anfield was also used to hold boxing, with at least one World Title bout being staged. Professional Tennis was also staged as well as various football internationals.

After the Second World War Liverpool won their 5th league title, helped by the likes of Billy Liddell and a young Bob Paisley. In the season 1953-54 Liverpool Football Club were relegated to the old division two but the reign of Bill Shankley was not far away.

Anfield in the 1960's was the birth of the Kop Choir and the city's musical success was soon to be mirrored on the football field. Groups of supporters would meet in local pubs to plan the Saturday afternoon's entertainment. The Albert, next door to the Kop was and still is, a regular haunt and rehearsal hall for the Kop Choir.

In the 1970's Liverpool FC's travels in Europe meant that fans were able to travel extensively and bring back part of the European culture to Anfield. The Kop was awash with foreign scarves, flags and various souvenirs. The Kop was the first terraced area in England to adopt the continental approach of using a mish mash of ideas from the likes of Italian, German and other European supporters.

The 1980's saw Anfield become a victim of it's own success. In 1978-79 only 4 goals were conceded at Anfield and the Kop had quietened somewhat. Unemployment was rife in Liverpool which obviously had some effect on the mood the city as a whole. A lot of support began to come from outside Liverpool, even abroad from Belfast, Dublin, Norway and Denmark in particular.

Then there was Heysel which had a dramatic effect on Liverpool FC. Then there was Hillsborough and the end of an era soon followed.

The 1990's saw Anfield thriving with estimations of up to two thirds of support coming from outside Liverpool. The ground is now an all-seater stadium, despite many fans wishing to retain some terracing on the Kop. There are plans afoot to redevelop or move from Anfield completely, and we will keep people updated on the this elsewhere on our website.