Cast your mind back to when Liverpool were last crowned champions of England in 1990 and picture the way Anfield looked.
Many will have no trouble remembering the stadium, with its three fairly primitive, single-tiered stands and a standing Kop, but try and recall some of the names on the advertising boards that flanked the playing surface.
You would see companies such as Rumbelows, Martin Dawes and All Man Kind, businesses all within the locality, alongside that of the then club sponsor Candy, an Italian firm that manufactured fridges and washing machines in Bromborough.
None of the first named ever had pretensions of being global entities but that didn’t matter. Liverpool – the first club in England ever to have sponsored shirts when a deal was struck with Hitachi in the late 70s – did well financially from them.
What’s more, they were the perfect fit for the era; they were local and their product would have been familiar with the vast majority of match-goers. Football back then, though, was not anywhere near as driven by finance as it is now.
Of course, Liverpool were known around the world and had a big following, not least because of their exploits in winning four European Cups in seven years, but any day-trippers to Anfield came largely by ferry from Ireland. That’s why the club shop, which was situated just behind the Main Stand, was adequate for servicing the needs of supporters; it was small but all it really needed to stock were replica kits, posters and knick-knacks, such as key rings, badges and pens.
Fast-forward to the present day and the Anfield you now see has been revolutionised from what it was back then; Liverpool are no longer just a football club but more a global brand.
“As a club, our aim is to be at the top and competing on a level playing field with our competitors,” said Liverpool’s commercial director Ian Ayre. “We have got to win on the pitch as much as we can.
“But we have also got to generate as much money as our peers to generate funds to give us the opportunity to compete for the best players. That is why you have got to follow the market.”
Now the advertising boards are littered with some of the biggest companies in the world, the stadium – while still not big enough to service the club’s needs – has been transformed and the money being brought in dwarfs the totals of 20 years ago.
Look, for instance, at the record-breaking deal that was struck last September; even as champions, Liverpool in 1990 could not have dreamed of negotiating a figure of £80m to let Standard Chartered Bank put their names on the front of that famous Red shirt.
The catalyst for change, undoubtedly, was the advent of Sky Television; the money they started pumping into football in return for beaming pictures of the Premier League all around the world, opened up many opportunities for clubs.
Aside from that, the influx of foreign players has increased the interest for supporters in different countries and the ease with which you can travel nowadays, both domestically and internationally, has helped increase Liverpool’s appeal.
“International fans make a huge contribution to the club,” said Ayre. “We convince them that we are the best in the world, so it would be wrong to deny them a chance to see us; that is why we have tours to the Far East, to give them the ability to see us play.
“Chelsea and Manchester United go to the Far East and make money, so you can either do it or not. But commercially we have a great opportunity to do well there, as we have a growing army of international fans.”
There have been times in the past when criticism of the club in terms of marketing and ability to bring in revenue has been justified – that the official store was shut the day after the heroics of Istanbul still beggars belief – but they are clearly making up for lost time.
Perhaps the best example of that is the fact Liverpool now has more retail floor space in this city (35,500 square feet), thanks largely to the superstores in Liverpool One and Williamson Square, than Manchester United have in Manchester.
Meanwhile, the club’s official website experiences higher numbers of visitors every day than all its rivals and Liverpool comfortably sell more Adidas shirts than that company’s three other “big guns” AC Milan, Real Madrid and Chelsea.
Clearly, then, the Liverpool of 1990 cannot stand comparison with the Liverpool of 2010 and while the past two decades have not seen the kind of success many wished for, it’s possible to argue that the club’s brand has never been bigger or more popular.
Aside from Adidas and Carlsberg, who have had their names on the front of Liverpool’s shirt since 1992, there are a further 11 official partners, including Thomas Cook Sports, the Bank of America and Turespana.
But while improving the brand continues to be imperative, it will not be done at all costs; the tradition and reputation Liverpool have built up over the years must also be safeguarded; they are, after all, a football club first and foremost.
“The Liverpool Way strikes a chord with people and particularly in Asia,” said Kirkdale-born and lifelong Liverpool fan Ayre, who – having lived and worked in Malaysia, Hong Kong and China – is better placed than most to offer an opinion.
“If we ever get beaten by a really good team, you know the Kop will stand up and applaud the winners. We have never come across as arrogant and respect is a huge thing in the Asian culture.
“Standard Chartered have the right attitude and we could imagine from our first meeting with them having a successful partnership together. Of course, it is a real challenge trying to make progress yet keep with tradition.
“For every person that rings me up and say that it is about time Liverpool were able to do more commercially around the world, you will get another one asking why we are giving tickets to our sponsors.
“But, hopefully, we are moving on the right lines.”
