More than 150 police officers will be deployed in Bournemouth for Bournemouth vs Sturm Graz, with hundreds of Sturm Graz supporters expected to gather in the town centre on Thursday afternoon before walking to the Vitality Stadium. The fixture is scheduled for 20:00 BST, and police are warning of disruption along the route.
The fan walk route
Dorset Police said the walk will begin at Lansdowne Roundabout on Old Christchurch Road and go via Christchurch Road, through Boscombe and Gloucester Road to the Bournemouth ground. A police spokesperson said: "This is likely to cause some disruption to the road network along the route and our local officers, as well as partners, have been engaging with businesses that may be impacted."
Bournemouth's first European home night
Lindsay Dudfield, assistant chief constable, said the scale is normal for European football. "We anticipate there could be several hundred walking through the streets of Bournemouth and they may have flags, they may have banners, loud hailers, drums, they're likely to be chanting their club songs," she told the BBC. "Just to reassure communities, this is absolutely normal for the European football. We have planned for it and we have prepared for it."
Bournemouth sit 10th in the Europa League table after one game, with three points and a 2-1 goal difference. They are also 18th in the Premier League with three points from six matches, so the club's first home night in Europe arrives with plenty going on around it as well as on the pitch.
The city centre walk will put supporters in view before kick-off, and Bournemouth v Sturm Graz is being treated as a public-order job as much as a football match. The route, the officer deployment and the 20:00 BST kick-off leave little margin for anything to drift on Thursday night.
Written by Jack Mercer with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 1 outlet. How we work →
