It was proposed in 2002 for the club to relocate to a new stadium in the adjacent Stanley Park, but after the acquisition of Liverpool by Fenway Sports Group in 2010, it was made clear this would not happen, with the decision being taken to expand Anfield instead.

[7] This extension, one of the largest all-seater single stands in European football, opened to the public on 9 September 2016, increasing the stadium capacity to 54,074.

[9][10] It has been suggested that the name is linked to the influx of Irish people into the spreading city in the 1850s, and was associated with Annefield, outside New Ross, County Wexford, Ireland.

[13] Everton, who previously played at Priory Road, were in need of a new venue owing to the noise produced by the crowd on match days.

The ground was considered of international standard at the time, playing host to the British Home Championship match between England and Ireland in 1889.

[16] In 1892, negotiations to purchase the land at Anfield from Orrell escalated into a dispute between Houlding and the Everton committee over how the club was run.

and Athletic Grounds Ltd, and the club's first match at Anfield was a friendly played in front of 200 people on 1 September 1892, against Rotherham Town.

[28] Two years later alterations were made at the Anfield Road end, turning it into a larger covered standing area with refreshments under the structure.

Originally a large terraced banking providing accommodation for more than 30,000 spectators, the current incarnation was constructed in 1994–95 and is single-tiered with no executive boxes.

[48] Then-Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp had banned players from touching the restored sign until the team had won at least one major trophy.

Several attempts were made between 2003 and 2007 by the Liverpool City Council to instigate a groundshare of the proposed stadium with local rivals Everton, but this move was rejected, as neither club favoured it.

[65] Hicks and Gillett promised to begin work on the stadium within 60 days of acquisition of the club, but had trouble financing the estimated £500 million needed for the Stanley Park development.

After attending a number of games at Anfield, Henry stated that "the Kop is unrivalled", adding "it would be hard to replicate that feeling anywhere else".

[66] On 15 October 2012, Liverpool City Council announced plans to regenerate the Anfield area after securing a £25m grant, with a housing association also set to invest.

[69] On 11 September, current owner John W. Henry announced that they had the funds to afford the expansion, but they are waiting for the City Council to finalise the purchase of houses in the area before they commit to plans to expand the Main Stand and the Anfield Road end of the ground.

[75] The houses were left empty, including at least 22 in the roads backing onto the main stand, and Liverpool were accused of deliberately allowing the area to become blighted, thus depressing the property prices.

Consisting of 1.8 million bricks and blocks and over 5000 tonnes of steel, the stand was opened on schedule on 9 September 2016 for the first home game of the 2016–17 season, a 4–1 victory over Leicester City.

[77][78] In May 2016, outline planning permission was granted by Liverpool council for the construction of a new 1,800 sq m club superstore development, situated on Walton Breck Road on the corner of the Kop and the new Main Stand.

The club received initial outline planning permission in 2014 for the redevelopment, with seating to be increased by 4,825, giving Anfield a total capacity of 58,000.

[84][85] However, in March 2020, Liverpool delayed submitting a planning application for the project, in light of financial uncertainty caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The expansion was expected to cost £60 million and allowed Anfield Road stand to seat 7,000 more people, giving the stadium a total capacity of 61,000.

Anfield was also the home venue for several of England's international football matches in the early 1900s, and for the Welsh national team in the later part of that century.

Liverpool held an annual race which started from St George's plateau in the city centre and finished with a lap of Anfield.

Take That lead singer Gary Barlow, a Liverpool fan, brought out a guest vocalist, Gerry Marsden, and they sang the club's anthem “You'll Never Walk Alone”.

[114][115][116] Taylor Swift played three consecutive dates at the stadium, featuring Paramore as special guests, from 13 to 15 June 2024 as part of her Eras Tour.

[117] The highest sporting attendance recorded at Anfield is 61,905, for Liverpool's match against Wolverhampton Wanderers in the FA Cup fifth round, on 2 February 1952.

[118] Since the Anfield Road end was expanded, Liverpool have seen bigger league attendances, and their most recent was 60,420 against Ipswich Town on 25 January 2025.

[124] The stadium is about 2 miles (3 km) from Lime Street Station,[125] which lies on a branch of the West Coast Main Line from London Euston.

Fans travelling by train for matches may book direct to Anfield or Goodison Park, changing to the Peoplesbus Soccerbus service at Sandhills Station on the Merseyrail Northern Line.

There are proposals under consideration for reinstating passenger traffic on the Bootle Branch, which would cut the distance from the nearest railway station to about 0.5 miles (1 km).