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Liverpool managing director Billy Hogan admits Anfield's new Main Stand has been “a game changer”.

The stadium dilemma was one of the biggest issues owners Fenway Sports Group inherited when they bought the club back in 2010.

They weighed up the pros and cons of redeveloping the Reds' historic home or building a new ground before committing to the former.

Phase one was completed in September 2016 with the opening of the impressive £110million Main Stand which bolstered capacity to 54,000.

In the season that followed matchday revenues received a £12million boost to £74million. The figures for 2017/18 have yet to be published but they will be considerably higher once again with Liverpool 's Champions League run ensuring they played four more home matches than the previous campaign.

“It's been a game changer for all of Anfield,” Hogan told the ECHO in an exclusive interview.

“A tremendous amount of work went into the entire project. Not just commercially, but from an operations standpoint, in terms of the impact on the overall match experience and getting people in and out of a stand that size - it's the size of most arenas.

“How has it changed things? It has fundamentally changed our hospitality offering. It's something we're very proud of.

“Phil Dutton and his team on the ticketing and hospitality front have done a great job working together to ensure that all the hospitality has been sold.

“We're trying to provide a best in class product. We can always improve on that but I think we're doing a pretty good job.

“Adding more GA (general admission) seats has been terrific as well. It has clearly made an impact from a matchday revenue standpoint.

“There are a number of lounges within the Main Stand which have naming partners so it has helped to drive the partnerships business too.

“Most importantly, it has taken an area which had the most dated amenities in the ground and provided world class facilities for our supporters which we're very proud of.”

The success of the Main Stand and the ongoing scramble for match tickets has led to calls for FSG for push on with stage two of Anfield's redevelopment.

Liverpool, who were granted planning permission to rebuild the Anfield Road stand in 2014, embarked on feasibility studies last year in a bid to find the right model in terms of design, feasibility, capacity and finance.

It would cost around £45million and provide around 5,000 extra seats. A final decision has yet to be taken with the new £50million training ground at Kirkby having been viewed as the priority.

“There's a tremendous amount of work going on related to the Anfield Road project specifically,” Hogan revealed.

“Exactly like we did with the Main Stand, we didn't comment on when it would happen or how it would happen because we wanted to have certainty before we did that.

“Only when we’re sure we’ve gone through a comprehensive process and come to a conclusion will we move forward.

“I appreciate fans will want to know sooner rather than later but we are committed to doing this thoroughly like we did with the Main Stand.

“Clearly, if it were to happen there would be further commercial opportunities for us, similar to what we've done in the Main Stand with lounge sponsorships.”

Some £200million has already been committed to improving the club's infrastructure. As well as the Main Stand and training ground, significant funds have been spent on Anfield's new pitch and the plush new retail store which opened its doors last August.

“It's been huge for us. In the previous store, there just wasn't enough space for what we were trying to achieve,” Hogan said.

“Now it's a true superstore - something befitting the club. At 19,000 square feet, even on a busy matchday when it's rammed with people, it can handle that kind of traffic.

“Over a million people will go through that store over the course of a year which is tremendous. It's about giving our fans the right experience. Not just those who come to a match once, but those who come multiple times over the course of the season.

“We've worked closely with our partners like New Balance to try to create a great retail experience.”

That link up with the Boston-based sportswear manufacturer has blossomed since New Balance took over as Liverpool's kit supplier from Warrior in 2015. Last season's home kit was the most popular in the club's history.

“I wouldn't want to put a number against it but it was a record-breaker,” Hogan said.

“I think it was a combination of factors that made it so successful. Our 125th year was a great celebration for the club and that being reflected on the kit made it unique. There was also the change in colour to the red pepper.

“The New Balance team and our retail and partnerships team work together on what the design of the kit might look like. They went through a lot of discussions and a lot of fan research, and that colour change was embraced by the supporter base.

“Right from the start, the sales numbers were off the charts. Performances on the pitch always helps and the excitement around the team over the course of the season also contributed to it being a record selling season.

“Our relationship with New Balance has been terrific. The new kits this season have taken off really well.

“It's always hard to follow a record breaker. We have maintained the red pepper colour but the design is a bit different. We're very happy with how all three are performing and we'll see how we go over the course of the season.”

When will that “multi-year” kit deal with New Balance be up for renewal?

“We wouldn't comment specifically on how long they have left. When it's appropriate to sit down and have a discussion about a renewal, we'll do so,” Hogan said.

Liverpool's expansion when it comes to retail has continued apace with new outlets established in America, Canada, Hong Kong and Holland.

“It's a combination of structures in terms of how we are expanding on a global basis,” Hogan explained.

“Clearly, it starts from here. We have our own controlled stores, not just in Liverpool but in Belfast and Dublin too.

“As you get out of the UK and Ireland the relationships tend to be where we team up with a local partner in that particular country.

“In certain cases, they are standalone stores, in others they are a shop within a shop. You might go into a sports retailer and there's a Liverpool section within the store.

“From a global perspective, Mike Cox runs our merchandising area and his team are always looking at how we expand across the world through those retail channels and from an E-commerce standpoint as well.”

Pre-season tours form an important part of Liverpool connecting with their global fanbase.

In recent years they have alternated between Asia and America. There was also an end-of-season friendly in Sydney in 2017.

This summer's trip to North Carolina, New Jersey and Michigan ticked all the boxes both in terms of football and business.

“We always sit down around this time every year and think about what's in store for next year,” Hogan said.

“Our tours and friendlies team do an unbelievable job organising. In the States a hundred plus people were travelling across three cities for eight days, getting everyone from airports to hotels to stadiums, with community events and partner activities, it's a lot of work.

“Couple that with the team needing to prepare and needing great facilities to make sure they go through their pre-season in the right way.

“We don't have a destination yet for 2019 but the reason why we have alternated between those two massive markets in Asia and America is because of the opportunities we see there and the chance to bring the club out to our fans.

“We've also done a lot in Europe over the last couple of years. Playing in Munich and Berlin last summer, Dublin has been tremendous - it feels like a home away from home. It's a limited amount of time that we have to take the first team out so we try to take them to as many places as we can.”

How about Africa? In Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane and Naby Keita, Liverpool boast three icons from that continent and the club's profile there has rocketed.

Hogan said: “We're open to looking at all territories. We've got three very popular players from that continent.

“Ultimately, it just needs to make sense for the club in general in terms of the right locations for us to accomplish all the things we need to do.”

There's a balance to be struck between football and business. Jurgen Klopp is involved in the discussions and always has the final word on all overseas tours.

Hogan said: “Typically, what we do is put together a plan and then we have a chat with the football side of the club and ask 'does this make sense?'

“Jurgen is 100% supportive of what we're doing across the club and 100% comfortable giving his feedback in terms of what he does and doesn't need. Those conversations are important.

“Ultimately, it has to work for football first and foremost. If the team can't get themselves into shape for the season then it really doesn't matter what else we've done on the tour.

“It's about performance on the pitch. We have to give them what they need first and then we work together on it.”

(Image: Andrew Powell/Liverpool FC via Getty Images)

Liverpool played in front of more than 200,000 supporters to their three International Champions Cup matches in America and Hogan says that showcased the growth of the sport in his homeland.

“Clearly, the States is a priority market for us,” he said.

“We have a tremendous fanbase there already. We saw that from the tour this year. The popularity of the sport is growing massively there.

“The Premier League has a tremendous partnership with NBC over there who do a great job promoting and distributing the game.

“There's a real opportunity in the States. There's a generation coming up who are much more familiar with the teams of the game and the stars of the game compared to how I was growing up there. The US is clearly a market we're focused on.

“Asia and in particular South East Asia has always been a massive area of support for the club. We've seen that on tours out there and in the engagement we have across our social media channels.

“China is an area where there's been more of a focus on football over the last three years or so both from a government perspective as well as a general public perspective. There are a number of strategic key markets that we're focused on.”

Progress on the field with Klopp at the helm is helping to generate the cash required to further strengthen a star-studded squad. The hope is that glory will follow.

"There is a tremendous amount of excitement within the organisation," Hogan added.

"This truly is one club - we feel like there's a great opportunity in front of us.

"Our fans are excited about where the club is heading. From a business standpoint, it's been gratifying to have worked on a strategy for several years and now see the team where it is.

"An unbelievable amount of credit has to go to Jurgen and the football side. The efforts of those who work for the club but don't kick a ball on a daily basis also deserve to be recognised.

"Ultimately, this is all about us winning on the pitch and being successful. We want our supporters to be proud of that and feel like they're part of it. That's what makes this club unique."