During the course of 2022, we’ll take a look at memorabilia from locations where Billy Graham preached and will be locations where Franklin Graham or Will Graham will preach this year during evangelistic events, continuing the legacy Billy Graham and his team began more than 70 years ago.

Billy Graham was presented with a unique crystal decanter by the Sheffield Football (Soccer) Club while in Sheffield, England in 1985. On one side, the item reads, “Presented to Billy Graham to Commemorate Mission England, 22nd-29th June 1985,” and on the other side, the decanter has the Sheffield United (Football Club) logo with its founding year of 1889.

Groundbreaking Use of Technology

Over the course of Billy Graham’s ministry, he held Crusade events in the United Kingdom several times. In 1985, Billy Graham returned to the U.K. to preach in Sheffield, England, for a week-long event in Bramall Lane, the local soccer stadium. For the first time, the event was broadcast over livelink satellite throughout Great Britain, and more than 181,000 people watched the event remotely from many types of venues including theaters and auditoriums and parish halls.

This led to an even greater impact in 1989, when satellite technology had grown, to broadcast the Mission England Crusade in London to 250 locations in England, Scotland, Wales, and Ireland and an additional 300 locations in 30 countries in Africa.

So, in many ways, the Sheffield, England event was ground-breaking, and certainly no less so for the nearly 258,000 people who filled the soccer stadium to hear Billy Graham preach in person throughout the Crusade event. During the course of the week, more than 26,000 people went forward to commit their lives to Christ.

The Legacy Continues

In May 2022, Billy Graham’s son, Franklin Graham, will follow in his father’s footsteps as he holds a Festival event in Sheffield, England, as part of his God Loves You Tour UK. Find out more about the God Loves You Tour UK at: https://godlovesyoutour.org.uk/