The Bootroom LFC

Boot Room Boys: The inside story of Liverpool FC’s rise to the top

A new documentary will celebrate the unique heritage of Liverpool FC’s so-called Boot Room Boys, featuring interviews with Jurgen Klopp and Sir Kenny Dalglish.

The famed boot room was in the inner sanctum of LFC during the Reds’ incredible rise from the second division to European elite in the 1960s and 1970s.

It all began with Bill Shankly and his backroom staff of Bob Paisley, Joe Fagan, Ronnie Moran, Tom Saunders and Reuben Bennett (pictured above), where they would drink tea, analyse opponents, invite opposition managers in and share ideas that shaped Liverpool FC.

The Boot Room Boys film examines how unique club culture underpinned its success in rarely seen archive footage and interviews exploring the Boot Room’s influence on the club.

The film is an adaptation of The Boot Room Boys book written by Peter Hooton, the lead singer of The Farm – and he fronts the documentary.

There are also contributions from Jurgen Klopp, Sir Kenny Dalglish, Phil Thompson, Ian Rush, Jimmy Case, David Fairclough, Alan Kennedy and more

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EqKYHgFjphA&ab_channel=BTSport

 

About The Liverpool Boot Room

Bill Shankly’s arrival as manager in December 1959 was the catalyst for establishing a legendary lineage of Liverpool coaches and managers: Bob Paisley, Joe Fagan, Ronnie Moran, Kenny Dalglish, Roy Evans: just some of the names to pass through the four walls of the now-famous Anfield boot room, a small meeting place underneath the main stand that served as the epicentre of Liverpool’s dominance in the latter half of the 20th century.

Liverpool manager Bill Shankly crouches by the trophies that his team won the previous season, including the League Championship trophy and the FA Charity Shield, as his players line up in the background: (l-r) Ian St John, Ian Callaghan, Roger Hunt, Gordon Milne, Peter Thompson, Ron Yeats, Chris Lawler, Tommy Smith, Geoff Strong, Gerry Byrne, Willie Stevenson, Tommy Lawrence. 1966. ( PA Photos/PA Archive/PA Images)

When Shankly took charge, a struggling Liverpool side were embarking on their sixth consecutive campaign in the Second Division and who, less than a year earlier, had been dumped out of the FA Cup by non-league Worcester City. Unbeknownst to the club, the fans, and the city of Liverpool, the history of football would be changed forever.

Shankly and his successors created the backbone of Liverpool’s success and established the club as one of the most prestigious names in world football, with contributions from the likes of Evans, Dalglish, Phil Thompson, Ian Rush, Sammy Lee and Willie Stevenson. Although the line of boot room descendants was broken in 1998, its legacy lives on: exclusive interviews in the film with Jürgen Klopp, Peter Krawietz and Pep Lijnders reveal how the institution continues to shape Anfield today.

“The Boot Room Boys is a fitting tribute to the legacy and influence of the Shankly dynasty,” says Sally Brown, BT Sport Films Executive Producer and Commissioning Editor.

“Not just on Liverpool Football Club, but on the English game as a whole, and provides a fascinating insight into football management.”

* BT Sport will premiere The Boot Room Boys on BT Sport 3 at 10.30pm on 5 April.