Club Profile

Bournemouth

This “little club that could” is stabilizing in the Premier League, and seeing a game in Bournemouth means visiting a posh and lovely seaside town for a game in a tiny stadium. Good luck getting tickets, though.

LOCATION: In Dorset on the South Coast of England, about two hours from Waterloo station in London

CONTACT: afcb.co.uk

NICKNAMES: The Cherries, for their shirts, or Boscombe, for their former home and name

History

If you just started paying attention to the Premier League in the last few years, you might have noticed Bournemouth and thought, Where’s that? and Gosh, that’s a small stadium. What you would be missing is that this little club came from almost out of business to get into the top division in 2015, thus becoming a model for small clubs with big…

Rivalries

Asked about rivalries before a game, a steward told us they used to have rivals in the area, but they’d left them all behind. Then he added, “Honestly, we’re just living the dream, punching way above our weight, and we don’t have a problem with anybody!” You would think that fellow South Coast clubs like Southampton and Brighton would qualify,…

Women's Team

Last season, Bournemouth Women won Division One South West (tier 4) of Women’s National League, so this year they are in the Premier Division at tier 3. Home games are at Ringwood Community

Songs

They like to sing “Keep the Red Flag Flying High from Dean Court to Wembley.” They also do a cool old-fashioned tribute to their former selves with a simple “Boscombe—Back of the

Stadium

The Vitality Stadium, named after a sponsorship deal with an insurance company, was called Dean Court until Bournemouth made the Premier League. It is tiny—like, 11,300 seats tiny. The new stadium was thrown together in 2001 in a matter of months, and when the club made the Championship in 2013, they built a temporary stand in one end. It’s still…

Going to a Game at Bournemouth

GETTING THERE: The main rail station in town is about a 30-minute walk or about a £10 cab ride. You can also take the P2 or P3 Yellow Bus for six stops to Queens Park Hotel. It’s a five-minute walk from there. Or just get a cab and make sure you have their number for postgame, especially if you’re staying closer to the center of town. PUBS: There…

AFC Bournemouth Tickets

Because the stadium is so small, this was probably the toughest ticket in the Premier League when they were last up there. Memberships don’t seem to help, hospitality sells out before the season starts, and your best bet is probably a cup draw against a small team.

Anyway, it’s always worth an email or a call to the club.

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