Newcastle United hosts Liverpool with tributes to Kevin Keegan in season opener

Two clubs that Kevin Keegan shaped in profound and lasting ways will share a pitch on August 23, and for once, the rivalry takes a back seat. Newcastle United’s season-opening clash against Liverpool at St James’ Park doubles as a coordinated celebration of the man who became royalty at both grounds, who passed away on July 20 at age 75 after a battle with cancer.

The tributes planned are staggering in scale. A 52,000-card salute, tifos, banners, and a mosaic constructed inside the centre circle from the shirts supporters left at St James’ Park in the weeks following Keegan’s death.

A stadium-wide farewell

Wor Flags, the Newcastle supporter group known for organizing elaborate matchday displays, is behind much of the choreography.

The centre-circle mosaic is built from actual shirts, left by grieving Newcastle fans at the ground after news broke of Keegan’s passing.

A video montage celebrating Keegan’s time as both player and manager at both clubs will also be shown to the crowd. Liverpool are participating fully in the tribute rather than standing to the side.

Why Keegan belonged to both clubs

Keegan arrived at Liverpool from Scunthorpe United in 1971 and became central to the club’s dominant era under Bill Shankly and Bob Paisley. He won three First Division titles, two UEFA Cups, one FA Cup, and the European Cup during his time at Anfield. He was twice named European Footballer of the Year.

His move to Newcastle in 1982 was supposed to be a quiet wind-down in the second tier of English football. Instead, Keegan almost single-handedly dragged Newcastle back to the top flight before retiring, then returned as manager in 1992 and built the team known as “The Entertainers.”

The 1995-96 season, when his Newcastle side blew a 12-point lead to lose the title to Manchester United, remains one of the Premier League’s foundational stories.

A rare truce on Tyneside

Newcastle versus Liverpool has produced some of the Premier League era’s most memorable matches. The 4-3 thriller in April 1996, which Liverpool won and which effectively ended Newcastle’s title hopes that season, is routinely cited as one of the greatest games ever played in the competition.

The 52,000 cards held aloft in unison will produce images that circulate for decades. The mosaic of tribute shirts at the centre circle will be dismantled before kickoff.

Keegan was 75. He spent his career making people feel something, whether it was the Liverpool Kop in the 1970s or the Gallowgate End in the 1990s.

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