Every Premier League membership’s emblem is full of symbolism paying tribute to its native space, historical past and traditions – however none have a narrative fairly like Bournemouth.

The crest, which depicts a silhouette of an individual heading a soccer in entrance of a purple and black stripe background, is the solely considered one of its variety in the Premier League.

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But do you know the face is modelled on a former striker?

Dickie Dowsett was a prolific goalscorer for the Cherries, scoring a complete of 79 targets throughout 5 seasons between 1957 and 1962.

After his retirement from enjoying in 1968, Dowsett returned to the membership to turn out to be its business supervisor.

Then-manager Freddie Cox needed Dowsett to focus on growing Bournemouth’s profile, quite than being concerned in on-pitch issues and the former footballer turned a key determine alongside John Bond in reinventing the membership’s model.

Bournemouth's badge featuring a face heading a football (left) and on the right is former Bournemouth striker Dickie Dowsett

Former striker Dickie Dowsett is the face on Bournemouth’s badge [Getty Images]

Bond refreshed the membership’s dwelling package to black and purple stripes from the 1970-71 season in a nod to Italian high-flyers AC Milan, whereas Dowsett modified their title from Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic to AFC Bournemouth in 1971 so that the membership would seem first in alphabetical lists of English groups and fixtures.

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“I said to John Bond, if we call it AFC Bournemouth, then we will always be at the top of the list when they print the fixtures,” Dowsett instructed Cherries historian Michael Dunne.

Dowsett didn’t turn out to be the face of the Bournemouth badge till 1972, however hypothesis remained about the actual id of the thriller determine on the emblem.

It wasn’t confirmed till Dowsett regaled the story to Dunne years later.

“We were thinking of changing the badge after we had done the kit and name. I went down there and they used an image of me heading the ball,” he defined.

The picture is really not from a match however quite {a photograph} of Dowsett heading the ball in a studio.

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“I was always good in the air, that’s how I scored at least half of my goals,” Dowsett mentioned.

The design was changed by a bunch of cherries in the early Eighties to suit with the membership’s nickname, however it reverted again to the badge that includes Dowsett in 1983.

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