The Stones & Silva Pub: A Farewell With Proper City Feeling
In modern football, goodbyes are rarely simple. Especially when the players leaving are not just names on a teamsheet, but part of the way a club remembers its greatest years. With The Stones & Silva pub, Manchester City turned a farewell into something warmer, louder and far more Manchester than a standard tribute post.
A Pub for Two Modern City Legends
For four days, from 21 to 24 May 2026, Manchester City took over The Star & Garter on Fairfield Street and transformed it into The Stones & Silva pub. The pop-up was created to honour John Stones and Bernardo Silva ahead of their departures from the club this summer.
The designers did not build it like a polished museum piece. It felt more like the kind of tribute football fans actually understand: a pub, a pint, some old chants and walls filled with memories. The space featured themed decorations inspired by their City careers, including portraits, supporter chants, a specially designed dartboard and the recreated Oasis-style image of the two players.
Why It Works
What makes The Stones & Silva pub interesting is that it speaks the language of football culture. Clubs often celebrate players with videos, graphics or limited shirts, but City went for something physical. Something fans could walk into.
That matters, because Stones and Bernardo were not just successful players. Both were central figures in Pep Guardiola’s golden era at the Etihad. City stated that each player lifted 20 major honours during their time at the club, with Bernardo becoming one of Guardiola’s most-used players and Stones helping redefine what a modern defender could look like in City’s system.
Bernardo’s legacy is built on intelligence, control and endless work. Stones’ is about calmness, reinvention and the ability to move between defence and midfield with a kind of quiet confidence that became symbolic of Guardiola’s football.
More Than a Send-Off
The detail that lifts the whole idea is the location. A Manchester pub feels right for a tribute connected to Oasis references, City chants and two players who became part of the club‘s modern identity. Adding even more charm to the tribute, the first 100 fans of each day received free beers.
In that sense, this was more than a simple goodbye. It was a reminder that football memory does not only live inside stadiums. Sometimes it lives in a pub, between framed photos, old songs and fans raising a glass to players who helped define an era.
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If you want to read more about the connection between Manchester City and their fans, check out our article on how they will help designing the official 26/27 kit.
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