Liverpool FC: Why Renaming Anfield Would Be a Horrible Decision

It was announced last week that Liverpool owner John Henry could be willing to sell the naming rights to Liverpool's beloved home, Anfield, and cash in on the profits (via the Daily Mail). 

According to the aforementioned article, Henry said: "A naming rights deal at Anfield could occur, I suppose, if the partner were right. We haven't pursued it."

While it looks as if Henry is looking at other ways to increase Liverpool's global revenue, the rebranding of Anfield in ways such as those applied to the Etihad Stadium, the Emirates and the newly rebranded Sports Direct Arena (Newcastle's St. James' Park) would boost the club's revenue with a hefty sponsorship deal. 

This is would be a grave mistake on John Henry's part, no matter how much money was raised.

A large part of playing for Liverpool and being a Liverpool fan is the unique experience of travelling and watching a game inside Anfield, one of football's most hallowed grounds. 

Henry would certainly incur the wrath of the fans if he went ahead and rebranded the stadium. 

The new Warrior logos on the seats are blemishes enough. 

Anfield plays such a big part in a fan's life. It is such a huge part of the club's history that it would be insane to change the name. Anfield is written into the Liverpool songs. It is etched into the memories of countless Liverpool fans, both young and old. 

Personally, a life dream of mine is to stand in the Kop and sing along will the thousands of other crazy Liverpool fans around me. That dream would be ruined if I traveled to the Warrior Stadium or the Standard Chartered Arena. 

Liverpool isn't about sponsorships or making gazillions of dollars. Liverpool is about playing great, entertaining football. Liverpool is about its history.

Renaming Anfield would be a huge, distancing step away from Liverpool's illustrious history. Plus, the fans would be livid. 

That should really be the only reason renaming Anfield should be out of the question: incurring the wrath of the fans. 

I've been grateful to John Henry for getting the club out of debt after Tom Hicks and George Gillet almost drove Liverpool into administration, and I think most fans will be forever grateful for that. 

However, if he were to green-light a name change, it would be a major sign of disrespect to the club and what it stands for. 

Anfield is where legends have been made. Robbie Fowler, Kenny Dalglish, Michael Owen, Sami Hyypia, Jamie Carragher and Steven Gerrard all have come through Anfield and dazzled us. They called Anfield their home. 

Rebranding Anfield would be a major mistake on John Henry's part, no matter the revenue brought in. He would be erasing a piece of history.