Foley's club plays its first Premier League match under his stewardship on Tuesday (9:30 a.m. PT at Chelsea on USA Network). With that in mind, what follows are some of the basics on Bournemouth for the curious VGK fan.
Where is Bournemouth?
Bournemouth is a coastal resort town of nearly 200,000 in Southern England, approximately two hours southwest of London.
What does "AFC" mean? What is the team's nickname?
AFC stands for Association Football Club. AFC Bournemouth's nickname is "The Cherries" after the team's red jerseys (or kit) that it wears at home and the cherry trees that used to occupy the team's grounds. A common cheer - think "Go Knights Go!" - is "Up the Cherries." Online you will see the hashtag #UTCIAD, or Up the Cherries in All Departments.
What is the club's history?
Founded in 1899 as Boscombe, the club adopted its current name in 1971. It spent much of its history in England' third and fourth divisions, but has been ascendant of late. AFC Bournemouth's first team has competed in the Premier League in six of the past eight seasons.
The club isn't always in the Premier League?
English football follows a system of promotion and relegation, meaning that the bottom three teams in the Premier League each season (18th, 19th and 20th place) are relegated to the Championship division, while the top three teams in the Championship are promoted to the Premier League.
What does the club entail besides the first team?
While the first team competes in the Premier League and receives the most attention, AFC Bournemouth also fields a women's team, a development squad and an under-18 team. There are also Junior Cherries, much like the Junior Golden Knights VGK fans would be familiar with.
Where does Bournemouth's first team stand this season?
The Cherries enter Tuesday's match in 14th place in the Premier League with a record of 4-4-7 (wins, draws and losses). While a win could lift them as high as 11th, relegation remains a threat; the 18th-place Wolves are only three points behind Bournemouth.
When does the season run?
Bournemouth's season stretches from August through May and includes 38 Premier League matches - one at home and one away against each of the other 19 Premier League clubs.
What are the FA Cup or Carabao Cup matches?
In addition to the Premier League schedule, AFC Bournemouth competes for trophies with other clubs in the FA Cup and the Carabao Cup. The Cherries reached the round of 16 in the Carabao Cup before falling, 1-0, to Newcastle earlier this month. The Football Association Challenge Cup - or FA Cup - is the oldest national football competition in the world. Bournemouth will face Burnley in the third round of that competition on Jan. 7.
What is a transfer window?
Two Premier League transfer windows give teams opportunities to add players from other clubs around the world. One of these windows runs the month of January, and Bournemouth fans are eager to see how active Foley and his new ownership group will be. A second, longer transfer window runs during the summer off-season.
Transfer windows aren't like trades or free agency that NHL fans would be accustomed to. Transfers, when a player has term remaining on his contract, require a team to pay his previous team for the rights to the player and then agree to a new contract for the player moving forward.
How can U.S. fans watch AFC Bournemouth?
Some matches, like Tuesday's, will be televised is the U.S. on NBC networks (9:30 a.m. PT Tuesday on USA Network). All Premier League matches are available to stream in the U.S. on Peacock. Some Cup matches during the season, like the FA Cup, are streamed on ESPN+.
Upcoming First Team Matches
Tuesday, Dec. 27: at Chelsea, 9:30 a.m. PT (USA Network)
Saturday, Dec. 31: vs. Crystal Palace, 7 a.m. PT (Peacock)
Tuesday, Jan. 3: at Manchester United, 12 p.m. PT (Peacock)
Saturday, Jan. 7: vs. Burnley, 7 a.m. PT (ESPN+)
How else can I follow AFC Bournemouth?
Learn more about Bournemouth on the club's
website
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