BBC: Everton League Cup game is postponed for 15 minutes due to fans safe entry

August 28 BBC reported that the original scheduled kickoff time of the second round of the League Cup between Everton and Mansfield was delayed due to the need to ensure the safe entry of fans. The match, held at Higginson's new stadium, was finally postponed by 15 minutes, and a large number of empty seats were seen at the start of the game.

Everton announced on August 16 that the stadium tickets that can accommodate 52,700 people were sold out, but the official 2-0 victory was 48,583 spectators. The stadium ushered in its first official match last week, with the Toffees defeating Brighton 2-0 in the Premier League. On the day of the League Cup, a large number of fans complained about ticketing issues were poured into Everton's social media channels, including Twitter's fan service account. After moving from Goodison Park to the new stadium, physical tickets have been replaced by electronic tickets, but some fans said they have not received electronic tickets as of Wednesday afternoon. The club stated that the delay in the game was to ensure that all fans enter Hickinson Stadium in a timely and safe manner. Club sources told BBC Sports that home and visiting fans were facing admission problems, but it was not caused by the digital tickets for the application. A few fans with problems can go to the ticket gate after the ticket office is solved, but a large-scale queue has been formed here.