While there is naturally a lot of positivity around Everton's move to the Hill Dickinson Stadium, the move from Goodison Park hasn't been without teething issues.
In terms of the stadium itself, nobody can have any complaints. It's stunning, has brilliant acoustics and has unquestionably been made with football fans as the priority.
However, from a logistical point of view, there are issues around transportation in and out of the area, and as thousands of fans found out this week, problems related to getting through the new digital turnstiles at the stadium.
/https%3A%2F%2Ffootballgroundguide.com%2Fapp%2Fuploads%2F2025%2F08%2FHill-Dickinson-Stadium-problems.jpg "Hill Dickinson Stadium problems: Fan fury as thousands miss kick-off against Mansfield 1")
Everton fans react to Hill Dickinson Stadium kick-off delay
Before Everton's Carabao Cup second round clash with Mansfield earlier this week, kick-off was delayed after large queues formed outside the turnstiles at the Hill Dickinson Stadium.
The reason for the queues was due to the new digital ticket system that Everton have put in place for the 2025/26 season.
Throughout the day, Everton fans had been complaining on social media that their digital tickets for the match had not yet appeared on the dedicated app.
Decision said to be based on the number of supporters yet to enter.
As visible in this video, taken at intended KO off time of 745, lots of seats yet to be taken (the game is a sell-out).
DMs open to anyone who would like to share their experience. https://t.co/SSqcgvpb4m pic.twitter.com/WCzhC0ELF0
— Joe Thomas (@joe_thomas18) August 27, 2025
This resulted in thousands of fans having to visit the ticket office before kick-off to resolve the issue. Speaking about the issue on social media, one Everton fan posted:
“My 80-year-old granddad's physical season ticket wasn't working at the turnstiles. I had already gone in first, so I couldn't go the box office with him as the steward said there was no way for me to get out. Took him 20 minutes to get it sorted and get into the ground. Shocking.”
Another fan said that there were also issues in the first Premier League match at the stadium. They said:
“Against Brighton, we could only enter turnstile 2, with the stewards having to allow us to use turnstile 1. The problem is that tickets only allow fans to go through one turnstile instead of numerous ones.”
A third added: “The stadium simply has half the number of turnstiles that are actually needed.”
FGG says: An easy fix
Digital tickets have been a problem, at first, for all football clubs that have incorporated them, so Everton would have been expecting teething issues. Fortunately for them, there is an easy fix to all this, and that is simply time.