Everton are set to leave Goodison Park in the summer and move to their new home at Bramley-Moore Dock. While the decision to leave their home of 133 years has divided opinion among supporters, the decision, objectively speaking, is already looking like the right one.
On Monday, 14 April, it was revealed that all tickets for England's Rugby League clash with Australia later this year at the new stadium have been sold. The announcement was significant for several reasons.
The impact of the Bramley-Moore Dock Ashes sell out
Firstly, it means that Everton will be the home of the biggest attendance at an international Rugby League match in England since 1994. Secondly, it shows that interest in Rugby League's version of the Ashes is getting to the levels of interest in the Cricket version.
Thirdly, and most importantly from an Everton perspective, is that it indicates that Everton are becoming more of a global entity, which could help the club reach new heights.
Goodison Park would never have been selected to host such a fixture in its current state, and the speed at which tickets were sold for the Bramley-Moore Dock fixture proves there is an appetite for people across the country to visit the club's new home.
How does this help Everton?
A lot of Everton fans would point to the sell-out and claim that 50,000 fans attending a Rugby League match at their stadium does absolutely nothing for them. They'd be wrong.
First of all, from a financial point of view, Everton's new ability to host huge non-football events will significantly increase their revenue and a direct result of that, is more flexibility in the transfer market.
The club have stagnated in the transfer window in recent times after a series of costly errors but the stadium could be their route back to competing for places in the top six, particularly with David Moyes in charge.
Additionally, the optics of having their stadium host big events such as the Ashes is huge. The match will be broadcast across the globe and will undoubtedly attract a lot of attention.