A football club in Liverpool was founded by a group of 'hopeless romantics' who shared a vision for a supporter-led club in the heart of the city
Fans watch City of Liverpool FC playing Cheadle at Burscough FC stadium in Ormskirk
Fans watch City of Liverpool FC playing Cheadle at Burscough FC stadium(Image: Liverpool ECHO)
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It was all started in 2015 by a group of 'hopeless romantics' who wanted to create a member-owned football club in Liverpool. That vision was born out from the increasing divide between a billion pound industry of Premier League football, and the communities from which those clubs had been born.
These 'romantics' were a group of disaffected Liverpool FC supporters who had become concerned about the direction of the sport, fearing the move towards a globalised entertainment product, was eroding the fabric of the game they loved.
Indeed, the holy trinity once cited by managerial messiah Bill Shankly, made it clear that football was all about the players, the manager and the supporters, "Directors don’t come into it. They are only there to sign the checks.”
However, by the 2010s, those 'checks' were astronomically different to the ones being signed in the 1960s, and 'directors' were now solely focused on the bottom line, driving greater TV revenues and other commercial enterprises.
Peter Furmedge and Paul Manning, two of the key figures behind plans for the City of Liverpool FC
Peter Furmedge and Paul Manning, two of the key figures behind plans for the City of Liverpool FC(Image: Liverpool Echo)
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The illusion these new riches would be funnelled back into the football pyramid - or be used to bring down ticket prices - was quickly dispelled as player wages and agent fees rocketed, only slightly less vertically than profits for some clubs, and mounting debt for others.
The first real green shoots of a 'fan rebellion' could be seen in February 2016, when thousands of Liverpool FC supporters walked out of Anfield in protest against constantly increasing ticket prices, the first walkout of its kind in the club's 132-year history. Supporters’ groups organised the action for the 77th minute of the match against Sunderland, after the club had first announced £77 match tickets (up from £59) and £1,000 season tickets for the 2016/17 season.
The protest fitted perfectly within the firmament at the time, and came just five months after some fans decided to take even more drastic action. In September 2015, and within the walls of the Quaker Meeting House on School Lane, the City of Liverpool Football Club (COLFC) was founded as a supporter-owned club, and set up as a Community Benefit Society.
It had lofty aims, and was keen to delineate a space for fans of both Everton FC and Liverpool FC to come together and back a football project rooted in the community, for the community. This was symbolised in its choice of purple for the club's home kit, something which would lead onto their collective nickname 'the purps'.
It was always going to be difficult, good things often are, so when Liverpool city council informed the club it would be unable to provide a suitable ground - just two months after being founded - the board members didn't fret. Instead, they set their sights on a new location, and struck a deal with Bootle FC to play at Vesty Road, and submitted an application to join the FA National League System at Step 6.
City of Liverpool FC players celebrate one of their three goals against Litherland REMYCA in their Hallmark Security League First Division Playoff Final at Litherland Sports Park. 2018
City of Liverpool FC players celebrate one of their three goals against Litherland REMYCA in their Hallmark Security League First Division Playoff Final at Litherland Sports Park. 2018
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It was an exciting time, and (full disclosure) I became one of the club's first paid-up members.
Looking back now, and by the end of the Brendan Rodgers era, I was disenchanted by Premier League football, and the arguments listed above about the commercialisation of the game, had resonated with me.
Perhaps like many other Liverpool FC fans, the initial sense of rebellion and disconnect started to ebb away when Jurgen Klopp took over, and I became drawn into the tractor-beam of the German's undoubted charisma, his managerial excellence, and his declared intention to reinstate the connection between fans and players.
As a result, and after attending a few games in support of COLFC, my initial commitment started to wain and I soon tuned out of what was going on, only checking in occasionally to see if the project was still going.
Those cursory glances gave a clue to the mounting challenges faced by the club, as it battled to find a home ground to play its matches, something both necessary and vital to achieve a sustainable future.
In 2018, and after clinching two cups and promotion in its inaugural season, the club took a huge step towards securing its own ground. The playing fields site in Fazakerley was identified as the perfect location and the club was granted permission to draw up plans, and a recommendation was put forward to the club's 1,200 member-shareholders.
Design proposals drawn up by Studio RBA for a new stadium that could be the home of City of Liverpool FC. Image: Studio RBA
Design proposals drawn up by Studio RBA for a new stadium that could be the home of City of Liverpool FC. Image: Studio RBA(Image: liverpool echo)
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At the time, COLFC was riding a seemingly unending wave of success, as well as national media attention and acclaim. Its average home crowd of 459 was three times that of most clubs at the same level, and the club regularly hosted foodbank and charity appeals, campaigns which were perfectly aligned with the club's ethos.
Even though they were enjoying their temporary home at Bootle FC, the ambition was to bring the club within the city limits, and that seemed closer than ever before when the Fazakerley project was announced. However, by 2022, those plans had hit a 'glass ceiling', with the club admitting it couldn't overcome the "major hurdles" to move forward with the development, while another plan to develop on Adlam Park was met with the same response.
In 2023, it seemed the search for a permanent home would finally be concluded as plans were drawn up for land at Edge Lane recreation ground, also known as Rathbone Park. The proposals would see COLFC revitalise the derelict all-weather football pitch, and adjoining community park, to provide a “first-class community sporting amenity.”
Once again, that dream died, this time in the face of opposition from Liverpool city councillors, including Old Swan West ward representative Cllr William Shirtall who said at the time: "I had serious issues with this bid and the proposals for a community football ground here.
Rathbone Park in Old Swan, Liverpool
Rathbone Park in Old Swan, Liverpool(Image: Liverpool Echo)
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"Along with many residents, I was concerned that the proposals would take away recreational space from the community, as well as causing transport problems locally."
During this period, COLFC alternated their temporary homes between Bootle, the Vauxhall Motors in Ellesmere Port, the DCBL Stadium in Widnes, before signing a two-year groundshare agreement with Burscough FC in July 2025.
COLFC's dream had always been to create a home stadium in Liverpool, so with the move to Burscough, and no new plans for a permanent ground, the club's dream has never been further away, both practically and geographically. The sadness of that reality will hit everyone who wished the project success, and certainly motivated me to look a little deeper into what has been happening.
So when I saw a few social media posts at the end of last year, I was concerned to read about some of the difficulties at the club, culminating in a statement published to COLFC's website on December 24.
Titled 'Boxing Day and beyond', COLFC chairman Paul Manning posted an update stating: "It is with regret that COLFC announces that it is unable to fulfil our Boxing Day fixture against South Liverpool FC, due to financial difficulties.
How the proposed stadium at Edge Lane could look
The proposed stadium at Edge Lane which sadly never happened
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We have notified the NWCFL, South Liverpool FC and the Match Officials and apologise to anybody who had made plans to attend the game."
This statement was preceded by a disastrous run of results where COLFC had lost nine of its previous ten games, conceding 57 goals, and plunging them into the relegation zone of The North West Counties Football League's Premier Division. At the time of writing COLFC have played 37 games, won four, drawn five, lost 28, and conceded 142 goals along the way.
I reasoned the only way to get an understanding about COLFC's current situation was to go and watch a match, and that's exactly what I did. More than ten years after first cheering on The Purps, I headed out on the 12.9 mile journey from Bootle New Strand train station all the way to Burscough, via a brief layover in Southport.
I arrived at the Burscough FC Stadium just over an hour later, on what was a glorious sunny, fresh afternoon, ready to watch COLFC take on Cheadle. Factoring in the team's recent form, the hope for a result, felt widely optimistic, but that's what football fans generally are.
Burscough train station en route to watch City of Liverpool FC
Burscough Bridge train station en route to watch City of Liverpool FC(Image: Liverpool Echo)
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I paid the £10 entrance fee, bought a coffee and took my place in the stands to welcome the teams onto the pitch, adding my applause to the twenty other fans in attendance. Things started badly, and then they got a little bit worse.
Cheadle quickly went 2-0 up and COLFC had a player sent off for a second yellow card, so when half-time arrived, it looked like another big loss was on its way. But something unexpected happened, and far from facing down another crushing defeat, the team rallied and came back to even the score 2-2, and could easily have fashioned a winner.
As the players left the pitch to the few cheering fans there to watch the comeback, the game reminded me of why I was drawn to this club in the first place.
The game was a home fixture in name only, it was played 14 miles outside Liverpool city centre, but factoring in the scale of the financial challenges facing non-league football clubs, especially those without their own stadium, the ongoing existence of COLFC seems something akin to a miracle.
Team sheet for the match between City of Liverpool FC and Cheadle FC at Burscough stadium
Team sheet for the match between City of Liverpool FC and Cheadle FC at Burscough stadium(Image: Liverpool Echo)
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Although a symbolic departure from COLFC's original method statement, playing so far outside its designated home city, perhaps speaks to the complexities and significant difficulties in keeping a lower league football club alive and running. It can be argued the distance from Liverpool to Burscough, pales in comparison to the distance between so many established Premier League clubs and the lived-reality of the communities that live and work around those stadiums.
The future for COLFC seems uncertain, and if the situation continues to deteriorate, it's probable the club will struggle to survive much longer. If the ends does come, it will be a sad day for all those who have supported the club, but it will also be a sad day for football more generally.