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- 24/25 Season Preview 20 in 20 - AFC Bournemouth
24/25 Season Preview 20 in 20 - AFC Bournemouth
16 of 20 - The Cherries
nick lochner
August 10, 2024
The 2024/25 Season kicks off Friday August 16 when Fulham travel to Man United.
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AFC Bournemouth | 2022/23 Finish - 12th Place |
125 Years. AFC Bournemouth is a Medium-Small club on the south coast of England who fell to League 2 (level 4) in the 1990s and again in 2000s. In 2008, Bournemouth hired former player Eddie Howe (current manager at Newcastle) who led them to 3 promotions and into the PL for the first time in their history, and then kept them there 5 consecutive years. THe Cherries enter their 3rd straight season in the PL and 8th overall as they celebrate the 125th anniversary of the club with many celebrations planned.
2X Relegation. The last two seasons the Cherries were bettors picks to be relegated yet stayed up, including a 12th place finish last season just 2 points out of 10th with a minus 13 goal differential. That was 9 points better and an improvement from the minus 30 goal differential the previous season.
Streaker. To say Bournemouth were a “streaky” team would be an understatement. The Cherries did not win a game in their first 10, then won 7 of 9, then didn’t win over their next 7, went unbeaten over the next 5 before losing the final 3. Teams usually want consistency, that was not the case on the South coast.
Season 2. Last year the Cherries had new ownership, a new manager and a commitment to spending/acquisition - $100M+ in additional spending - and that combination worked. This season they have been more conservative in the off-season transfer window, and bring most of their squad back, including manager Irola. While on the pitch last season was anything but consistent, this consistency in the off-season brings a projected finish of 12th, much better than the 18-20 they’ve been the last couple seasons.
The Club
Located in Bournemouth (South Coast) Dean Court, now called Vitality Stadium, 11,307 capacity Rough estimates $152M Annual Revenue $65M Player Payroll  | History on the Pitch
Sponsorship
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 125th Anniversary Home Shirt |  Home Shirt |
 Away Shirt |  Third Shirt |
OwnershipBlack Knight Football Club American Businessman Bill Foley (LV Knights owner) completed a takeover bid for Bournemouth in December 2022. Foley is chairman of Cannae Holdings which owns 51% of the club. Michael B Jordan (Actor) leads the minority ownership group. Together they bought the club for $150M. Very good article on why Foley bought the team and what he plans to do with it here. “We will move forward with an 'always advance, never retreat’ approach”.  LV Knights | Biggest Rival - Southampton
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The Culture
In 2009, AFC Bournemouth was 1 match away from being relegated out of League 2 (Level 4), out of the EFL and down to Level 5. SEVEN years and three promotions later they were celebrating their first ever promotion to the PL. This was great news for other PL team’s fans, as Bournemouth is the first away match the fans look for as they can turn the trip into a seaside getaway.
AFC B has a relatively big fanbase given the stadium’s size of 11,000. The supporters were voted the best-behaved fanbase in the PL and seem to go by several nicknames: Red & Black Army, Cherries Red Army, the Cherries.
While the club has been around for a long time, it feels like the fast rise to the PL may be changing the culture, along with the new ownership. Two years ago, the Cherries did not sell a player from the previous season and added over $100M in acquisitions is quite a statement. Also, one look at the AFCB website and you can see the new owners focus - We Keep Moving.
BoscombeThe Club originally started as Boscombe FC, then in 1923 Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic Football Club. In 1971 they adopted the name AFC Bournemouth with the intention that the club would appear first in alphabetical lists of English clubs. Boscombe is a suburb of Bournemouth, home to over 7 miles of sandy beaches. Supporters You May Recognize
| Song“Flying high, up in the sky, We'll keep the red flag flying high, From Dean Court to Wembley, We'll keep the red flag flying high.”  Red & Black Army Game Day Pub Guide The Queens Park |
Fan Sites
According to the AI tool COPILOT - here is an image of a Bournemouth fan at Vitality Stadium, based on Wiki’s description of a Cherries fan.
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Official Twitter@afcbournemouth High Follows on Twitter @RBA_app (30k) @AFCBPodcast (5k) @CherriesChat (4k) |
The Team
The Gaffer
 Andoni Iraola ODDS
| Roster NotesFull Roster click link Projected to finish 12th Americans on the team (as of Aug 7)
Interested in playing Fantasy Soccer? Here are the basics. Typical teams have a budget of $100M and 15 players - $6.7M per player.
Goalkeeper
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Dean Court - Vitality Stadium
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