Half A Million Pounds To Put Fans First: Why Bournemouth’s Owners Deserve Credit

AFC Bournemouth took a half a million pound loss to have all four stands available for Europa League fixtures this season, Jim Frevola has announced.

The President of business operations sat down with Alexander Smith for an exclusive interview with the Daily Echo, in which he explained the South Stand was not UEFA compliant heading into the Cherries’ historic season.

The South Stand, a temporary stand constructed in 2013, has become a staple of the Vitality despite its interim purpose.

It is entirely compliant with Premier League regulations and is inspected multiple times per season, upholding all the correct health and safety certificates.

The club are in the process of completely remodelling the Ted Macdougall end as part of planned stadium renovations, but UEFA ruled that the cladding in the South Stand meant it could not be used in European matches, even for just one season before it is demolished.

This left the club in a dilemma with three available options. Either Bournemouth could play their home games at a separate venue (an idea Frevola said was immediately dismissed), close the South Stand entirely, or make the stand UEFA compliant for a singular season.

Frevola and Bill Foley opted for the third option at the expense of around £500,000. Frevola said this choice was the only option in their eyes, even though it will amount to a loss for the club.

But Foley said it was one of the easiest decisions he ever made. The expense of the stand was outweighed by the desire to have as many fans in attendance as possible.

And perhaps that is what makes this decision so significant.

In a footballing landscape where financial gain can so often take precedence over the supporters who make clubs what they are, Bournemouth's owners were willing to accept a substantial loss to ensure their fans could be part of a historic European campaign.

They could have saved the money. They could have closed the stand and accepted the additional revenue that would have come from a reduced stadium operation.

Instead, they chose to invest in the experience of their supporters, knowing that the financial return would not justify the expense.

Supporters should never lose the right to demand more from their club, but moments like this are a reminder that we should not take for granted what we already have.

Not every club would make the same decision. But Bournemouth's owners have demonstrated that keeping fans at the heart of the club can be worth more than the money they stand to lose.

For a club of Bournemouth's size, half a million pounds is no small sum. But Foley and Frevola were prepared to sacrifice it so that more supporters could share in a moment the club had worked so hard to reach.

They chose the fans over the money. And in modern football, that is something worth appreciating.

For the full, exclusive Jim Frevola interview with Alexander Smith, visit: AFC Bournemouth's Jim Frevola on south stand investment for UEFA | Bournemouth Echo