May 25 is a notable and special day in the rich history of Liverpool Football Club. It was the day that the Reds won their first European Cup, in Rome in 1977, and more recently it became known as ‘Istanbul Day’ after the miracle of 2005.
May 25 2025 has now entered the history books as the day Liverpool supporters, many of them for the first time, watched their team lift aloft the Premier League trophy at Anfield, ending a 35-year wait for fans to witness their side celebrating the title.
But for supporters so hungry and eager to properly celebrate a long-awaited title, this wasn’t just about Sunday. This is the story of how Liverpool celebrated for four days up until the horrific events after the parade.
Friday: Liverpool welcome back Jurgen Klopp
The weekend began with the headline act occurring over at Liverpool’s Anglican Cathedral, where Jurgen Klopp, returning to the city for the first time since his departure last May, was one of 700 attendees for the LFC Foundation’s Gala Ball.
The man who led the club to title no.19 five years ago took the headlines with his words of support for Trent Alexander-Arnold, but the event itself was about much more important topics, intending to raise £200,000 for the Foundation in order to support 500,000 people with initiatives including food poverty in the local area.
“There’s such a feel-good factor, I don’t think you could have written it better,” said Matt Parish, CEO of the Foundation. “The buzz in the city is amazing.”
Meanwhile, over at the Exhibition Centre, The Red Weekender supporters' event, organised by the popular BOSS Nights, kicked off with an Istanbul anniversary show that featured Rafa Benitez in conversation with Kelly Cates.
All around the city, almost every advertising board featured the club’s title success, with club sponsors such as Expedia and Google Pixel paying homage to the Reds.
Houses were decked out in red with bunting, banners and flags everywhere you looked.
Saturday: Kenny Dalglish joins the celebrations
Day two of The Red Weekender continued with fan media The RedmenTV hosting the Dalglish family in a surreal live show of Family Fortunes, hosted by Liverpudlian Les Dennis. Sir Kenny Dalglish joined in as over 1,500 in attendance performed the new Dutch-inspired Arne Slot song, shuffling from left to right.
Meanwhile, in West Derby, the home of Liverpool’s original Melwood training ground, a new mural was being unveiled to honour the great Bill Shankly. “This (Sunday) should be a day that everyone should enjoy,” Dalglish told FFT.
Over at Anfield, volunteers were placing out the cards for Anfield’s pre-match mosaic: ‘LFC CAMPIONE 20’. Such mosaics have become regular since the 1990s, meaning the man behind them, Andy Knott, had never had the privilege of organising one for a title win.
“Having been doing the mosaics for almost 30 years I've been waiting for the day when we did a champions mosaic,” Knott tells FFT. "We were robbed of the opportunity five years ago so it feels so much more important now."
A year ago, Knott, who provides his time and expertise at no expense, created one of his most memorable mosaics as Klopp departed. “Little did we know then that Arne would be so successful in his first season, allowing us this opportunity,” he says. “Let's hope we are doing it again next May!”
Sunday: The trophy lift
Matchday began with queues for the popular Anfield pubs Taggy’s and Hotel Anfield from 9am, seven hours before kick off. Taggy’s had even constructed their own title presentation platform in their beer garden.
By three hours before kick off, Anfield was busier than it would usually be 20 minutes before kick off for a regular game. Thousands had come just to be there, converging to feel the atmosphere and be a part of the celebrations: FFT spoke with fans from London, Ireland, Denmark, Netherlands, Canada, America and Brazil.
One fan, Alex Malone, originally from Toxteth and now living in Canada, surprised his son with tickets, going to Anfield under the pretence of just being there to sample the atmosphere: “That alone was enough to convince us we had to be there.” But once the surprise was sprung, Alex’s son, Gavin, was stunned into silence. “He didn't know whether to believe it,” says Alex, “but he also knows that although I love a good prank, this was not something I would joke about!”
25th May - A good day for a trophy lift 🏆 pic.twitter.com/tYncfQB5m3May 25, 2025
Inside the stadium, it was electric. ‘Bring on the champions,’ called the Kop, before the Reds were given and then gave a guard of honour to Crystal Palace, recognising their FA Cup success. The ‘double guard of honour’ was something Virgil van Dijk had planned and the captain was also involved in the decision to have the legendary Alan Hansen present the trophy post-match.
The match itself was like a support act at a music concert: it was nice to have, but everyone was waiting for the main event. Anfield’s reaction to Palace’s early goal was to sing louder and bounce around, balloons, banners and everything else. ‘Ee aye adio, we’ve won the league.’
Still, a late equaliser that ensured the points were shared and that Mohamed Salah equalled the Premier League record for goal contributions boosted the mood further.
Soon after Salah’s goal, Klopp, positioned among the hospitality seats with the best view in the house, was spotted singing along to Salah’s song. Earlier, Steven Gerrard was singing along to You’ll Never Walk Alone, while Gerrard’s name was regularly sung, especially from The Kop, every time Alexander-Arnold took a corner.
Post-match, the trophy being delivered by Mark and Jo McVeigh of the wonderful Owen McVeigh Foundation, Liverpool supporters got to finally see their team lift that Premier League crown.
Alisson Becker, the Reds’ ‘holy goalie’, ascended the Kop goal frame to be serenaded. Salah, the Egyptian King, wore the crown of the trophy to give us the perfect photo. Dalglish, arm in arm with his daughter, teared up at an emotional rendition of You’ll Never Walk Alone between fans and players.
Federico Chiesa, whose new song has completely taken the fans’ imagination, enjoyed one of the most heartwarming moments; the unused Italian was pushed towards The Kop and he stood in awe, clapping and smiling as the thousands belted out his tune. Van Dijk posed for a photo with Hansen and The Kop gave the legendary centre-back a serenade of his own in a lovely moment.
Monday: Horror strikes
With the Chiesa song stuck on loop in the minds of fans, hundreds of thousands began their journey to Liverpool and in particular the waterfront, where the parade would reach its climax in front of the iconic Liver Building and Albert Docks.
By noon, over two hours before the parade was due to begin and over five hours before it would eventually arrive along the Strand, the city centre was awash with fans in red. The rain could not dampen spirits.
At Oh Me Oh My, whose Goodness Gracious Rooftop provided one of the best views in the city, supporter Jens, from Aalborg in Denmark, told FFT his story of travelling to the city for the first time. “My gift from my wedding was a trip to Anfield but I got divorced before I got it,” he explained. “I cried twice during You’ll Never Walk Alone. I have never experienced anything like that.”
After over three hours, the parade reached the red-sky-filled waterfront where thousands upon thousands had waited in the rain, entertaining themselves with the Liverpool song sheet. ‘Federico, he’s here to win’. ‘He’s Luis Diaz, he’s from Barrancas’. ‘He’s a lad from Portugal.’ ‘He’s the best there’s been from the Argentine.’ Liverpool’s squad, assembled from around the world, being celebrated by fans who had travelled from around the globe to be there for a historic occasion.
Sadly, the celebrations took a dark turn as an emergency incident occurred on one of the main tributaries running down towards the waterfront. FFT were in a restaurant on Water Street as the events unfolded and spoke with eyewitnesses and the emergency crew.
A surreal scenario emerged, whereby those who had witnessed the event firsthand or been told of what had happened walked away in shock, and also slightly in fear, passing by the thousands still celebrating and completely unaware of the events unfolding on the parallel street 100 yards away. With phone signals jammed, few were aware of the incident occurring until long after.
Arne Slot has expressed his admiration for the emergency response to the serious incident that occurred during our trophy parade.Our head coach was due to receive two accolades at the LMA occasion tonight but withdrew in solidarity with those affected by the incident on Monday.May 27, 2025
As the events became clear, the community of not just Liverpool supporters but people of the city came together and rallied round. Just as they have done before. For thousands who were left stranded due to extremely poor organisation and communication at the city’s Lime Street train station, lifts and rooms were offered from strangers seeking to simply help.
Gridlock throughout the city centre meant that taxis were impossible. Buses were minimal due to the Bank Holiday. Trains left without being full despite thousands queuing outside Lime Street and Central Station. Other trains were dangerously overcrowded.
In the coming weeks and months, organisational questions will be asked and must be improved. After the season Liverpool FC have had, and the plans for the summer ahead, another parade won’t be long to wait; lessons must be learned.
