Liverpool's original This Is Anfield tunnel sign is heading to a two-day auction with a guide price of £10,000 to £15,000. The sign was chosen by Bill Shankly in 1972 after he rejected "Welcome To Anfield" as too friendly, and it was removed in the 1970s before spending years in the Rutland Hotel in Douglas, on the Isle of Man.
Bill Shankly's words
Shankly's choice gave the sign its edge. It was meant to greet Liverpool players in the tunnel, but also to tell visiting sides exactly where they were and what they were walking into.
Former Anfield stadium announcer George Sephton said: "I used to go past that and touch it every week, I consider that to be a real privilege," while former Reds player George Scott said it was about "going into a cauldron and they weren't going to come out with a win".
From tunnel marker to hotel wall
The sign did not stay hidden in storage. Peter Kenny Jones, the football historian, said: "It's just been sitting there as part of the knick-knacks on the wall in a hotel in Douglas," and added: "It hasn't had this grand setting, so now it's going to get its appreciation."
That feels about right. A piece of Liverpool folklore that once sat above the tunnel is now set for a sale on 8 and 9 September, with the auction room offering the sort of attention it has not had for years.
Written by Jack Mercer with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 1 outlet. How we work →
