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EVERTON chairman Bill Kenwright has died aged 78, the club has confirmed.Toffees chairman and West End theatre producer Bill passed away “peacefully” on Monday night.
It comes after the Merseyside club recently revealed he was forced to undergo emergency surgery in August to remove a cancerous tumour from his liver.
Kenwright has been at the helm of the Goodison Park ship since 2004 – but was the target of protests against the board earlier this year alongside owner Farhad Moshiri and chief executive Denise Barrett-Baxendale.
He was also one of the UK’s most successful theatre producers and was behind the long-running hit Blood Brothers and the record-breaking UK tour of Joseph and his Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.
Read our Bill Kenwright blog below for the latest updates…
Fans pay tribute
Football fans across the UK have paid tribute to the Everton chairman today.
Taking to X, formerly known as Twitter one supporter said: “RIP Bill. Condolences to his family and friends. We’ve lost a good one.”
A second added: “We stand with you in this hard times, our condolences to the family and the club.”
Everton release statement
Everton have released a club statement following the tragic news of Bill Kenwright’s passing.
The club said: “Everton Football Club is in mourning following the death of Chairman Bill Kenwright CBE, who passed away peacefully last night aged 78, surrounded by his family and loved ones.
“Everton’s longest serving chairman for more than a century, Bill Kenwright led the Club through a period of unprecedented change in English football.
“A lifelong Evertonian, he became a board member on October 23, 1989, and then on Boxing Day 1999 his True Blue Holdings consortium acquired the Club. Initially vice-chairman, he succeeded his close friend Sir Philip Carter as Chair in 2004.
“In his 19 seasons as Chairman, the Club secured 12 top eight finishes, including a top four finish in 2005, a run to the 2009 FA Cup final and European qualification on 6 separate occasions.
“The club has lost a chairman, a leader, a friend, and an inspiration. The thoughts and prayers of everyone at Everton are with his partner Jenny Seagrove, his daughter Lucy Kenwright, grandchildren and everybody who knew and loved him.”
Everton chief Bill Kenwright has died aged 78
The Everton chief Bill Kenwright has died aged 78, just weeks after the club announced he had undergone emergency surgery earlier this year.
Kenwright had been at the helm of the Goodison Park ship since 2004.
Everton Football Club is in mourning following the death of Chairman Bill Kenwright CBE, who passed away peacefully last night aged 78, surrounded by his family and loved ones.— Everton (@Everton) October 24, 2023 More