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Everton were founded as St. Domingo F.C. in 1878 in order that people from the parish of St. Domingo Methodist Church could play a sport outside of the summer months (during which time cricket was played). A year later the club were renamed Everton F.C. after the surrounding area, as people outside the parish wished to participate. They were founder members of the Football League in 1888, and won their first League Championship title in 1890–91. They won the FA Cup in 1905–06 and League title again in 1914–15, but it was not until 1927 that Everton's first sustained period of success began. In 1925 the club signed Dixie Dean who, in 1927–28, set the record for league goals in a single season (60 goals in 39 league games, a record that still stands to this day), helping Everton achieve their third league title.

Everton were relegated to the Second Division two years later but won the title and thus promotion at the first attempt. On their return to the top flight in 1931–32, Everton wasted no time in reaffirming their status and won a fourth League title at the first opportunity. They also won their second FA Cup in 1932–33 with a 3–0 win against Manchester City in the final. The era ended in 1938–39 with a fifth League title. The advent of World War II saw the suspension of League football, and once official competition restarted in 1946, the Everton team had been split up and paled in comparison to their pre-war incarnation. Everton were relegated again in 1950–51 and did not return until 1953–54, when they finished as runners-up in their third season in the Second Division. The club have been a top flight ever-present since.

Everton's second successful era started when Harry Catterick was made manager in 1961. In 1962–63, his second season in charge, Everton won the League title and in 1966 followed with a 3–2 FA Cup win over Sheffield Wednesday. Everton again reached the final two years later, but this time were unable to overcome West Bromwich Albion at Wembley. A year later in 1969–70, Everton won the First Division, nine points clear of nearest rivals Leeds United. However, the success did not last; the team finished fourteenth, fifteenth, seventeenth and seventh in the following seasons. Catterick retired but his successors failed to win any silverware for the remainder of the 1970s. Though the club finished third in 1977–78 and fourth the following season, manager Gordon Lee resigned in 1981, after Everton slid down the table and fell further behind local rivals Liverpool.

Howard Kendall took over as manager and guided Everton to their most successful era. Domestically, Everton won the FA Cup in 1983–84 and two league titles in 1984–85 and 1986–87. They were also runners-up to neighbouring Liverpool in both league and cup competitions in 1985–86 and were again on the losing side to Liverpool in the 1984 League Cup final and the 1988–89 FA Cup final. In Europe, Everton won their first and only trophy in the shape of the 1984–85 European Cup Winners' Cup. After beating University College Dublin, Inter Bratislava and Fortuna Sittard, Everton defeated German giants Bayern Munich 3–1 in the semi-finals, despite trailing at half time (in a match voted the greatest in Goodison Park history) and recorded the same scoreline over Austrian club Rapid Vienna in the final. Having also won the league title that season, Everton came very close to winning a treble, but lost to Manchester United in the FA Cup final.

After the Heysel Stadium disaster and the subsequent ban of all English clubs from continental football, Everton lost the chance to compete for more European trophies. A large proportion of the title-winning side was broken up following the ban; Kendall himself moved to Athletic Bilbao after the 1987 title triumph and was succeeded by assistant Colin Harvey. Everton were founder members of the FA Premier League in 1992, but struggled to find the right manager. Howard Kendall had returned in 1990 but could not repeat his previous success, while his successor, Mike Walker, was statistically the least successful Everton manager to date. When former Everton player Joe Royle took over in 1994 the club's form started to improve; his first game in charge was a 2–0 victory over derby rivals Liverpool. Royle dragged Everton clear of relegation, and also led the club to the FA Cup for the fifth time in its history, defeating Manchester United 1–0 in the final. The cup triumph was also Everton's passport to the Cup Winners' Cup — their first European campaign in the post-Heysel era. Progress under Joe Royle continued in 1995–96 as they climbed to sixth place in the Premiership.

The following season, 1996–97, was not as successful and the club finished in fifteenth place. Royle quit in March. Club captain, Dave Watson, was given the manager's job temporarily and he helped the club to Premiership survival. Howard Kendall was appointed Everton manager for the third time in 1997, but the appointment proved unsuccessful as Everton finished seventeenth in the Premiership; only avoiding relegation due to their superior goal difference over Bolton Wanderers. Former Rangers manager Walter Smith then took over from Kendall in the summer of 1998 but only managed three successive finishes in the bottom half of the table.

The Everton board finally ran out of patience with Smith and he was sacked in March 2002 with Everton in real danger of relegation. The current manager, David Moyes, was his replacement and delivered Everton to a safe finish in fifteenth place. After that harrowing season, Everton finished seventh, seventeenth, fourth (their highest ever Premiership finish) and eleventh. It was under his management that Wayne Rooney broke into the first team, before being sold to Manchester United for a club record fee of £23 million.. Moyes has twice broken the club record for highest transfer fee paid, signing James Beattie for £6 million in January 2005 and then Andy Johnson for £8.6 million in summer 2006.

Colours

During the first decades of their history, Everton had several different kit colours. The team originally played in blue and white stripes but as new players arriving at the club wore their old team's shirts during matches, confusion soon ensued. It was decided that the shirts would be dyed black, both to save on expenses and to instill a more professional look. The result, however, appeared morbid so a scarlet sash was added.

When the club moved to Goodison Park in 1892, they first played in salmon shirts with blue shorts before switching to ruby shirts with blue trim and dark blue shorts. The famous royal blue jerseys with white shorts were first used in the 1901–02 season. The kit today remains blue shirt, white shorts and white socks although when playing teams away who also wear white shorts Everton typically wear all blue. For the 2006–07 season, the away kit is a white shirt with navy blue shorts and socks, while the third kit is a mustard yellow shirt with black shorts and black socks.

Crest

At the end of the 1937–38 season, club secretary Theo Kelly, who later became The Toffees' first post-war manager, wanted to design a club necktie. It was agreed that the colour should be blue, but Kelly was given the task of designing a crest to be featured on the tie. Kelly thought about the matter for four months until deciding on a reproduction of the "Beacon" which stands in the heart of the Everton district. "The Beacon" or "Tower" has been inextricably linked with the Everton area since its construction in 1787. It was originally used as a bridewell to incarcerate criminals, and it still stands today on Everton Brow in Netherfield Road. The beacon was accompanied by two laurel wreaths on either side and, according to the College of Arms in London, Kelly chose to include the laurels as they were the sign of winners in classical times. The crest was accompanied by the club motto, "Nil Satis Nisi Optimum", which means "Nothing but the best is good enough". The ties were first worn by Kelly and the Everton chairman, Mr. E. Green, on the first day of the 1938–39 season.

The club rarely incorporated a badge of any description on its shirts. An interwoven "EFC" design was adopted between 1922 and 1930 before the club reverted to plain royal blue shirts, until 1973 when bold "EFC" lettering was added. The crest designed by Kelly was first used on the team's shirts in 1980 and has remained there ever since, undergoing gradual change to become the version used today. Some old crests are illustrated on the right; the top is the original shirt crest, the second is the first shirt crest with beacon and laurels and the third is the first shirt crest to use the club motto.

Nickname

Everton's most widely recognised nickname is "The Toffees" or "The Toffeemen", which came about after Everton had moved to Goodison. There are several explanations for how this name came to be adopted, the most well known being that there was a business near the ground called Mother Noblett's Toffee Shop which advertised and sold sweets, including the Everton Mint, on match days. This also led to the Toffee Lady tradition in which a girl walks around the perimeter of the pitch before the start of a game tossing free Everton Mints into the crowd. Another possible reason is that there was a house called Ye Anciente Everton Toffee House near the Queen's Head hotel in which early club meetings took place. The word "toffee" was also slang referring to Irishmen, of which there was a large population in the city at the turn of the century and who tended to support Everton rather than city rivals Liverpool.

Everton have had many other nicknames over the years. When the black kit was worn Everton were nicknamed "The Black Watch", after the famous army brigade. Since going blue in 1901, Everton have been given the simple nickname "The Blues". Everton's attractive style of play led to Steve Bloomer calling the team "scientific" in 1928, which is thought to have inspired the nickname "The School of Science". When David Moyes arrived as manager he christened Everton as "The People's Club", which has been adopted as a semi-official club nickname.

Stadium

Everton originally played in the southeast corner of Stanley Park, which is the site for the new Liverpool FC stadium, with the first official match taking place in 1879. In 1882, a man named J. Cruitt donated land at Priory Road which became the club's home before they moved to Anfield, which was Everton's home until 1892. At this time, a rent dispute led to Everton leaving the ground and to the formation of a new, rival team. The new club, Liverpool, set up at Anfield and Everton moved to Goodison Park, which has been their home ground to this day. Ever since those events, a fierce rivalry has existed between Everton and Liverpool, albeit one that is generally perceived as more respectful than many other derbies in English football. This was illustrated by a chain of red and blue scarves that were linked between the gates of both grounds across Stanley Park as a tribute to the Liverpool fans killed in the Hillsborough disaster.

Goodison Park has staged more top-flight football games than any other ground in the United Kingdom and was the only English club ground to host a semi-final at the 1966 FIFA World Cup. It was also the first English ground to have undersoil heating, the first to have two tiers on all sides and the first to have a three-tier stand. Goodison is the only stadium in the world that features a church in its grounds — St Luke the Evangelist — at the corner of the Main Stand and the Gwladys Street End.

On matchdays players walk out to the theme tune to Z-Cars, called 'Johnny Todd', a traditional Liverpool children's song collected in 1890 by Frank Kidson which tells the story of a sailor betrayed by his lover while away at sea.

New stadium

Recently, there have been indications that Everton may move from Goodison. In 2000, a proposal was submitted to build a 55,000 seat stadium as part of the King's Dock regeneration. Driven by 23% club owner Paul Gregg, this was unsuccessful as Everton failed to generate the £30 million needed for a half stake in the stadium project, and dropped in 2003 .

Late in 2004, driven by Liverpool Council and the Northwest Development Corporation, the club was in talks with Liverpool regarding sharing that club's proposed new stadium at Stanley Park. Negotiations broke down over ownership of the new facility – Liverpool wanted to retain sole ownership of Stanley Park while Everton sought an even share. On January 11, 2005, Liverpool announced that groundsharing was not a possibility, and they continue to plan for their own stadium. However, they are currently experiencing difficulties in finding finances.

More recently, the club have been approached by a wealthy local property developer with a view to constructing a new ground. Peel Holdings, a company led by multi-millionaire John Whittaker, are undertaking a feasibility study into developing a stadium on land they own in Netherton, a suburb in north Merseyside. The company would meet the costs of the project with Everton gradually acquiring the stadium on a lease-back scheme. However, the club are likely to await the outcome of Liverpool's ongoing project before deciding to leave their historic home at Goodison Park. On 16 June 2006, it was announced that Everton had entered into talks with Knowsley Council over the possibility of building a new 55,000 seat stadium in Kirkby.

Supporters

Everton have a large fanbase due to a long history punctuated by highly successful periods and have the seventh highest average attendance in England. Everton also have many supporters' clubs worldwide, in places such as North America, Singapore and Thailand.Everton also have a large supporter base in Australia, with midfield player Tim Cahill being Australian. The official supporters club is Evertonia, and there are also several fanzines including When Skies are Grey, which is sold around Goodison Park on match days.

Everton supporters sing several songs on matchdays but the most common is "It's a grand old team"; it is adopted from the version sung by Celtic supporters, making changes like "we don't care what the red side say" — a reference to red-wearing-rivals Liverpool. Also popular is singing the club name "Everton" to the tune of "Here we go". They are generally very welcoming to former players returning to Goodison while playing for new clubs. One exception is Wayne Rooney, who has become extremely unpopular with fans after he left Everton for Manchester United, having previously been pictured wearing a t-shirt declaring: "Once a Blue always a Blue" and is now roundly booed whenever he returns. Rooney claims Moyes forced him out of the club in his new book however David Moyes has taken legal action denying the claims made.

Everton's biggest rivalry is with fellow Merseyside team Liverpool, against whom they contest the Merseyside derby. This stems from Liverpool's formation after a dispute with Everton officials and the owners of Anfield (the ground Everton were using at the time). Religious differences have been cited as a division, though both teams stem from a Methodist origin, undermining the notion of a Catholic–Protestant split. The Merseyside derby is usually a sell out fixture and tends to be a scrappy affair; it has had more red cards than any other fixture in Premiership history.

Current squad

As at July 11 2006. Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player 1 GK  ENG Richard Wright 2 DF  ENG Tony Hibbert 3 DF  SCO Gary Naysmith 4 DF  NGA Joseph Yobo 5 DF  SCO David Weir (captain) 6 MF  ESP Mikel Arteta 7 MF  NED Andy van der Meyde 8 FW  ENG Andrew Johnson 9 FW  ENG James Beattie 10 MF  WAL Simon Davies 11 FW  SCO James McFadden 15 DF  ENG Alan Stubbs 16 DF  ENG Joleon Lescott

No. Pos. Nation Player 17 MF  AUS Tim Cahill 18 MF  ENG Phil Neville (vice captain) 19 DF  POR Nuno Valente 21 MF  ENG Leon Osman 22 FW  ENG James Vaughan 23 DF  ITA Alessandro Pistone 24 GK  USA Tim Howard (on loan from Manchester United) 26 MF  EIR Lee Carsley 28 FW  NGA Victor Anichebe 30 GK  ENG John Ruddy 31 DF  ENG Mark Hughes 36 DF  SCO Patrick Boyle 41 MF  ISL Bjarni Viðarsson

Out on loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player 13 GK  SCO Iain Turner (Crystal Palace until December 17, 2006)

For recent transfers, see the "Transfer Deals" section of 2006–07 in English football.

Notable former players

Everton giants

The following players are considered "giants" for their great contributions to Everton. A panel appointed by the club established the inaugural list in 2000 and a new inductee is announced every season.

As of August 26, 2006.

Inducted	Name	Nationality	Position	Everton career	Appearances	Goals
2006	Peter Reid		MF	1982–1989	234	13
2005	Graeme Sharp		FW	1979–1991	447	159
2004	Joe Royle		FW	1966–1974	275	119
2003	Kevin Ratcliffe		CB	1980–1991	461	2
2002	Ray Wilson		LB	1964–1968	151	0
2001	Alan Ball		MF	1966–1971	251	79
2000	Howard Kendall		MF	1966–1981	274	30
2000	Dave Watson		CB	1986–1999	522	38
2000	Neville Southall		GK	1981–1997	751	0
2000	Bob Latchford		FW	1973–1980	286	138
2000	Alex Young		FW	1960–1967	272	89
2000	Dave Hickson		FW	1951–1959	243	111
2000	T. G. Jones		CB	1936–1949	178	5
2000	Ted Sagar		GK	1929–1952	500	0
2000	Dixie Dean		FW	1924–1937	433	383
2000	Sam Chedgzoy		MF	1910–1925	300	36
2000	Jack Sharp		MF	1899–1909	342	80

Greatest ever team

At the start of the 2003–04 season, as part of the club's official celebration of their 125th anniversary, supporters cast votes to determine the greatest ever Everton team.

• Neville Southall (1981–97)
• Gary Stevens (1982–89)
• Brian Labone (1958–71)
• Kevin Ratcliffe (1980–91)
• Ray Wilson (1964–69)
• Trevor Steven (1983–90)
• Alan Ball (1966–71)
• Peter Reid (1982–89)
• Kevin Sheedy (1982–92)
• Dixie Dean (1925–37)
• Graeme Sharp (1980–91)

Notable managers

The following managers have all won at least one significant trophy with Everton:

Honours

• (Old) First Division titles: 9
  • 1890–91, 1914–15, 1927–28, 1931–32, 1938–39, 1962–63, 1969–70, 1984–85, 1986–87 (9)

• FA Cups: 5
  • 1906, 1933, 1966, 1984, 1995

• Charity Shields: 9
  • 1928, 1932, 1963, 1970, 1984, 1985, 1986 (shared), 1987, 1995

• European Cup Winners' Cup: 1
  • 1985

• (Old) Second Division title: 1
  • 1931

Records and statistics

Neville Southall holds the record for the most Everton appearances, having played 751 first-team matches between 1981 and 1997. The late centre half and former captain Brian Labone comes second, having played 534 times. The longest serving player is Goalkeeper Ted Sagar who played for 23 years between 1929 and 1953, both sides of the war, making a total of 495 appearances. The club's top goalscorer, with 383 goals in all competitions, is Dixie Dean; the second-highest goalscorer is Graeme Sharp with 159. Dean still holds the English national record of most goals in a season, with 60.

The record attendance for an Everton home match is 78,299 against Liverpool on 18 September 1948. Goodison Park, like all football grounds since the recommendations of the Taylor Report were implemented, is now an all-seater and only holds just over 40,000, meaning it is unlikely that this attendance record will ever be broken at Goodison.

References

• Corbett, James (2004). Everton: School of Science. Pan. ISBN 0330420062.
• Tallentire, Becky (2004). The Little Book of Everton. Carlton Books Ltd. ISBN 1844426521.

Footnotes

1. "I: The Early Days (1878-88)". Everton History. Retrieved August 22. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
2. "Goodison's greatest night". evertonfc.com. Retrieved August 24. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
3. "Rooney deal explained". BBC Sport. Retrieved August 22. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
4. "Beattie signs for Everton". evertonfc.com. Retrieved August 24. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
5. "Johnson signs for Everton". evertonfc.com. Retrieved August 24. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
6. "History of Everton crest from official site". evertonfc.com. Retrieved August 21. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
7. "Reasons behind the "toffees" nickname". Toffeeweb. Retrieved August 21. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
8. "h2g2 on Everton". BBC. Retrieved August 21. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
9. "Early Everton history - "The Black Watch"". evertonfc.com. Retrieved August 21. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
10. "The School of Science". Toffeeweb. Retrieved August 21. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
11. "Everton Players/Managers quotes". Bluekipper. Retrieved August 21. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
12. "Merseyside Derby". footballderbies.com. Retrieved August 22. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
13. "Everton firsts". evertonfc.com. Retrieved August 22. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
14. "Johnny Todd". feniks.com. Retrieved September 08. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
15. "Kings Dock proposal collapse". BBC. Retrieved August 22. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
16. "Everton and Liverpool say no to ground share". icliverpool. Retrieved August 22. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
17. "Liverpool struggle to find money for ground move". icliverpool. Retrieved August 22. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
18. "Everton in talks on stadium move". BBC. Retrieved August 22. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
19. "Top 30 English Football Clubs by League Attendances". footballeconomy.com. Retrieved August 21. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
20. "List of Everton Supporters Clubs". Bluekipper. Retrieved August 21. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
21. "Everton Supporters Club (North America)". North American Everton Supporters' Club Website. Retrieved August 21. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
22. "Everton Supporters Club (Singapore)". Singapore Everton Supporters' Club Website. Retrieved August 21. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
23. "Everton Official Site (In Thai)". evertonfc.com. Retrieved August 21. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
24. "Evertonia - Official Everton Supporters Club". evertonfc.com. Retrieved August 21. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
25. "Wayne Rooney profile including reference to "Once a Blue Always a Blue"". Toffeeweb. Retrieved August 21. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
26. "Rooney booed on his return". taipeittimes.com. Retrieved August 21. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
27. "Moyes sues Rooney over comments in book". BBC Sport. Retrieved September 08. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
28. "Why the Everton/Liverpool rivalry isn't religious". Toffeeweb. Retrieved August 21. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
29. "Two more red cards in the derby". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved August 21. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
30. "Everton Giants". evertonfc.com. Retrieved August 24. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
31. Kendall is on the list mainly as recognition of his achievements as a manager, rather than as a player.
32. "Greatest Ever Everton team". evertonfc.com. Retrieved August 22. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
33. Up until 1992, the top division of English football was the Football League First Division; since then, it has been the FA Premier League.

External links

• Official site
• Everton Former Players' Foundation
• Everton FC - Premierleague.com
• Everton F.C. on BBC Sport: Club news – Recent results and fixtures
• List of Everton links including unofficial websites

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• English football clubs
• Everton F.C.
• Football League founder members
• FA Premier League clubs
• Football (soccer) clubs established in 1878