Willie Stevenson
Willie Stevenson (William Stevenson) was a Scottish professional footballer and manager, born on 26 October 1939 in Leith, Scotland, and he passed away on 27 May 2025 at the age of 85. He played mainly as a left half.
Stevenson began with Edina Hearts and Dalkeith Thistle before turning professional with Rangers in 1958. He became a regular and helped Rangers win the league in his first season and the Scottish Cup in his second, while also featuring in the European Cup semi-finals in 1959-60. He lost his first-team place after Jim Baxter joined in 1960 and left Rangers in 1962.
Liverpool signed him for £20,000 in October 1962. He made his debut in November 1962 against Burnley and scored his first Liverpool goal against Leyton Orient. Stevenson played a key role as Liverpool won the First Division title in 1963-64 and the FA Cup in 1965, scoring in the semi-final. He helped the Reds win another league title in 1964-65 but missed the 1965 European Cup Winners Cup final.
In December 1967, Stevenson moved to Stoke City for £30,000. Over six seasons he made more than 100 appearances, and Stoke reached cup glory, though Stevenson was injured for the League Cup final when the club won it. He left Stoke in 1973 and joined Tranmere Rovers for a year.
Stevenson went on to play for Vancouver Whitecaps in 1974, then Limerick and Macclesfield Town, with a short spell at Hellenic in South Africa. After retiring from playing, he ran a pub and later a contract cleaning company in Macclesfield. He also represented Scotland at the Scottish League XI in 1959.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 08:58 (CET).