Peter Reid spoke ahead of managing an all-star Merseyside XI of Everton and Liverpool stars in Game4Hope at Hill Dickinson Stadium
Peter Reid during the Everton v Roma legends match at Hill Dickinson Stadium on August 9, 2025
Peter Reid during the Everton v Roma legends match at Hill Dickinson Stadium on August 9, 2025(Image: Tony McArdle/Everton FC)
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Everton legend Peter Reid is looking forward to getting back in the dugout at Hill Dickinson Stadium, but he insists there won’t be another playing cameo from himself.
Game4Hope is a Soccer Aid-style charity showdown between an all-star Merseyside XI, managed by Reid and John Barnes, against a Rest of the World XI at the Blues’ 52,769 capacity home on the Mersey waterfront at 4:45pm on Saturday, September 26. The event will raise funds for Shelter and Everton in the Community.
Donning a purple shirt – a nod to the combined Everton and Liverpool nature of the side – will be the likes of Leighton Baines, Gareth Barry, Phil Jagielka, Yakubu, Robbie Fowler, David James, Ryan Babel, Jari Litmanen, John Aldridge, Joleon Lescott and Louis Saha plus celebrity fans including Tony Bellew, John Bishop, James Nelson-Joyce, Molly McCann, Still Ryan and Big Zuu.
A Rest of the World side already brimming with talent features Brazil World Cup-winning captain Cafu, Champions League winners Clarence Seedorf and Jaap Stam, former fellow Netherlands international Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, Moroccan legend Mustapha Hadji and former Nottingham Forest and England star Des Walker, with Ted Lasso actors Toheeb Jimoh and Moe Hashim, Harry Aikines-Aryeetey, aka Nitro from Gladiators, Johnny Nelson and Jack Fowler.
With seven-time Women’s Premier League winner Rachel Yankey and Chelcee Grimes confirmed, Game4Hope will also see a number of famous female players and celebrities representing both teams. More legendary players, celebrities and special guests representing both sides will be announced in the build-up to the game while Tinie Tempah will be playing and performing as part of the half-time show.
Reid won two League Championships, an FA Cup and European Cup-Winners’ Cup with Everton following his £60,000 signing from Bolton Wanderers in 1982, was described by manager Howard Kendall as being the club’s most important signing since the Second World War. He also managed an Everton legends side to a 2-0 win over their Roma counterparts following the inaugural first team game in front of fans at Hill Dickinson Stadium between the two clubs on August 9 last year.
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In the latter stages of that match, the Huyton-born star came on himself for his first appearance in a royal blue jersey since January 14, 1989, but after subsequently celebrating his 70th birthday, the former midfielder, who will take part in the Great North Run this Sunday for the Sir Bobby Robson Foundation, insists his contributions will be confined to the touchline.
Reid told the ECHO: “This game is superb, so get down to Hill Dickinson Stadium and support the teams.
“When you look at some of the players who are coming there, it’s going to be a great occasion for a magnificent cause and it shows what the city is about, trying to get a few quid in for people who aren’t as well off as yourself.
“I think the players will enjoy it. I enjoyed getting on for seven minutes against Roma, that’ll do me.
“I think my playing days are gone. That seven minutes did me!
“I’m sure when these players see the stadium, they’ll enjoy it and it will be a great occasion.”
Peter Reid during the Everton v Roma legends match at Hill Dickinson Stadium on August 9, 2025
Peter Reid during the Everton v Roma legends match at Hill Dickinson Stadium on August 9, 2025(Image: Tony McArdle/Everton FC)
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Sue Gregory, chief executive of Everton in the Community, believes that the match has added poignancy given the issues she has experienced in the city while carrying out her role. She told the ECHO: “I’m very excited about it. This is the first big charity game that we’re going to host at Hill Dickinson Stadium.
“It’s for two great charities, Shelter and Everton in the Community. We have our own semi-independent home where we responded to the needs of homelessness and people living on the streets.
“It’s impacting different types of young people from across our communities. There are so many places where children or young people are sleeping rough or in places they shouldn’t be.
“We want to create a message, so people understand what is going on in our city and the need to support families and children. Also, our Home is Where The Heart Is project has been running for a number of years and we have supported 179 young people.
“The impact we’ve had has been immense. We’ve got kids who might have fallen more severely into homelessness where they couldn’t stay on in jobs or on their courses, but we’ve now got kids who are going to university, and one of our first residents has got a first-class honours degree.
“One has gone on to become a doctor, some have got families and their own house. You think how that bed that we provided has had a huge impact on turning around their lives.
Game4Hope takes place at Hill Dickinson Stadium on Saturday 26 September
Game4Hope takes place at Hill Dickinson Stadium on Saturday 26 September
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“It shouldn’t come down to where you’re born or factors out of your hands like problems with a family member or poverty. That shouldn’t derail you for what you want to achieve in life.
“Sometimes that system if you’re homeless and forced onto benefits, putting you into places you shouldn’t be sleeping, then employment, courses and the future are the last things on your mind when you’re wondering whether you’ll be safe that night. Just having the safety of our house has been so invaluable for them.
“We also do outreach to make sure kids can stay in their own properties right across the community. We support care leavers and those who might have had bereavements where they’re now on their own, there’s a vast array of support we can do around the issue of homelessness.
“It’s a combined Merseyside team to show that homelessness has no colours. Everyone can experience it and this is a way of creating that awareness.
“I think it’s really exciting that the players who have represented both clubs are coming together along with stars from other entertainment industries to have a whole lot of fun. Given that it’s to help with an issue that is impacting our city makes it even more special.”