A 140 year old pub will close today and it seems unlikely it will ever open again
Dave Bond from The Winslow Hotel(Image: Andrew Teebay Liverpool Echo)
The manager of a 140 year-old pub that will close today has vowed that the venue will be given a “great send-off”. The Winslow Hotel, next to Goodison Park, opened its doors in 1886, before the famous stadium hosted its first matches in 1892 when Everton FC moved in.
It has welcomed generations of Everton supporters through its doors but its visitor numbers have fallen drastically since the men’s side moved to the new Hill Dickinson Stadium this season. The closure was announced in early December by Dave Bond, the pub’s general manager.
Dave, who is originally from County Clare but now lives in Norris Green, argued it wasn’t financially viable to keep the pub going due to the collapse in business on matchdays.
Although Everton Women now play at Goodison, attendances have ranged from 3,000 to 6,000, well below the 40,000 that it used to host for the men’s side.
The Winslow opened six years before Goodison Park did(Image: Andrew Teebay Liverpool Echo)
Speaking ahead of the pub’s sold-out farewell party this afternoon, Dave told the ECHO he knew his plan to try and breathe fresh life into The Winslow by running coaches from the pub to the new stadium would not work back in August, when the Blues faced Roma in a pre-season friendly.
Dave said: “The Winslow actually predates Goodison by six years. It’s been part of Evertonians’ matchday ritual since the beginning.
“At the beginning of the season, I knew we would be fighting a losing battle. I thought we might knock a season out of it or a half season, but it wasn’t sustainable.
Fans outside the Winslow Hotel prior to Everton’s final match at Goodison Park against Southampton on May 18, 2025(Image: Chris Brunskill/Fantasista/Getty Images)
“Even after Roma in pre-season, the writing was on the wall. I had coaches outside the door and the turnout, and it applied to all the other pubs that did it as well, was absolutely minimal.
“It was so bad – like 15, 20, 25 people. We were on a hiding to nothing. We knew straight away that it was only a matter of time.”
Despite this, Dave says this week has been an emotional one for him. He said: “I did Tony Snell on Radio Merseyside last week and I’ve done a couple of podcasts in the last few days.
“It’s starting to hit home now because a lot of effort has gone into here over the years. I’ve been an Evertonian since childhood, so for me it’s been a privilege to be looking at Goodison every day.
The Winslow was the local of Dixie Dean, the Birkenhead-born Everton forward who holds the record for the most goals scored in a single season in top-flight English football, with 60 in the 1927/28 season(Image: Andrew Teebay Liverpool Echo)
“I’ve been in the pub game a long time and to spend 12 years of my life running an iconic Evertonian venue, probably the most iconic Evertonian venue – I don’t think I’d be overstepping the mark by saying that – it’s been a privilege.
“I’ve had the pleasure of having wonderful staff and a team around me, and obviously our customers are fantastic. It’s a fantastic venue.
“We’ve had great support from Everton Football Club. The likes of Darren Griffiths (EFC media manager) has always helped us with events. Some ex-players have always chipped in like Graham Stewart and Ian Snodin.
The farewell party will take place this afternoon(Image: Andrew Teebay Liverpool Echo)
“It’s been a fantastic journey, but it’s a journey that’s coming to an end and everything comes to an end in life. It’s going to be emotional.”
This afternoon, a sold-out farewell party will take place at The Winslow. Former Everton players Ian Snodin, Graham Stewart, Alan Stubbs and Joe Parkinson will speak about their memories of the venue. There will also be live entertainment and music.
For Dave, the thought of closing the pub quietly never crossed his mind. He said: “It came out in December after we had an event here with the Swedish toffees.
Everton fans outside the Winslow Hotel before the men’s side played at Goodison Park for the final time in May 2025(Image: Andrew Teebay Liverpool Echo)
“I got talking to Alan Myers (former EFC employee and Sky Sports journalist). He did a little interview with me for his podcast and I just mentioned on it that ‘I can’t see us lasting far into 2026’.
“That was something that came off the cuff. When he put a video on Twitter of me saying this, it gathered a lot of momentum.
“I had also said that we wouldn’t just close the doors, we would have a farewell party. I didn’t realise at the time the demand that was going to come once I advertised it.
“I could have done six farewells. The demand has been astronomical. I’ve just been inundated with phone calls, text messages, emails, everything for more tickets.
The Winslow Hotel in 2016(Image: Liverpool Echo)
“I don’t know in world football if there’s another venue so close to a top football club stadium, which has the longevity of The Winslow. There might be in the lower leagues but I don’t know that there is in top flight football.
“I think it’s a testament to everyone that’s been involved in this business over the years, not just me, prior to me.
“Outside the door, we got two plaques for Norman Greenhalgh and Jack Borthwick who played for Everton post WW2 and WW1. Their families were involved in the licensee and tenancy here.
“Neil Robinson, who played for Everton, his dad was the head barman here. This was Dixie Dean’s local.”
The current state of the area around Goodison is very different now, with some venues at the heart of matchday trade closing while others struggle on.
Everton fans celebrate beating Bournemouth and surviving relegation in May 2023 in The Winslow Hotel(Image: Andrew Teebay Liverpool Echo)
Dave said, as he is the manager of the pub and not the owner of the building, he does not know what will happen to the site.
A planning application to turn it into a 26-bed guest house was rejected back in November, with Liverpool City Council’s planning committee citing the “significantly detrimental impact” the proposal would have on residents in the area due to the noise that would be created.
Meanwhile, Dave is preparing to open Dixie’s, a new Everton bar located on Dickson Street by the Hill Dickinson stadium.
Dave said: “It was quite sad and poignant when the men’s team left Goodison. That tie was pretty much slowly severed.
“You could say the cord was cut when the club moved and now it’s just a case of the curtain coming down.”
However, Saturday is a day for celebration, not mourning. Dave said: “It’ll give everyone a great send-off and give people the chance to enjoy the last night at The Winslow. It’ll be like The Last Night of the Proms.”