Everton has announced that the first test event for its new stadium will take place next month as it gears up for full opening ahead of the 2025-26 season.
The Premier League football club has set out plans for three test events, commencing with an Under-18s friendly fixture on February 17 in front of a capacity of 10,000 spectators. Everton’s Under-21s will then play a friendly for the second test event in late March or early April, when the capacity will be increased to 25,000. A third test event will be held later in the current season.
The restricted capacities for the events are a requirement of the testing process that will allow the Merseyside club to obtain the necessary licence and safety certificates to operate the stadium at full 52,888-seat capacity from when it officially opens later this year.
Tickets for the first two test events will be allocated by way of ballots. Running from today (Friday) through to January 10, the ballots will be available to existing season ticket and Goodison Park hospitality members; supporters who have committed to a 2025-26 premium bars, restaurants and experiences membership; and Everton shareholders.
Tickets for the first two test events will be priced at £5 (€6.03/$6.20) for adults and £2.50 for concessions (Under-18 and Over-65) and will be issued digitally to allow for the electronic turnstile system at Everton Stadium to be tested as part of the event schedule.
Due to the conditions and requirements of the test events, all tickets for the first test event will be allocated in the South Stand, in either the lower-tier rail seating section or upper-tier seating section. For the second test event, all stands will be open, with a restricted number of seats available in each.
The latest news comes after Everton formally took control of its new home at Bramley-Moore Dock prior to Christmas. The handover came three-and-a-half years after the commencement of the project back in August 2021.
Everton is now overseeing the six-month fit-out phase of the project. This will include interior design specialists, tradesmen and women and audio-visual engineers completing the stadium’s bars, restaurants and experiences, and retail spaces.
The handover ceremony took place just a day after Everton confirmed that The Friedkin Group (TFG) had completed its takeover of the club. TFG has financially supported the stadium development and the club through an initial loan investment in the summer and with funding during the change of control process.
