AFC Bournemouth are gearing up for life in the Championship next season by expanding the capacity of their stadium.

The south coast club recently gained promotion following a 3-1 win over Carlisle and other results going in their favour and are looking to build upon this momentum by improving their Goldsands Stadium. The home of The Cherries currently holds less than 10,000 spectators and only has three stands but chairman Eddie Mitchell wants to change this for the 2013/14 campaign. The Bournemouth chief plans to construct a new 4,000-seater stand to help them compete with bigger teams in the Championship.

It is only the second time in the club's history that they have reached this level of English football but they would have the smallest capacity in the league if they did not embark on an expansion plan. The Championship is littered with former Premier League teams with the likes of Leeds United, Derby County and Middlesbrough all boasting grounds with 25,000 and over capacities. Bournemouth have noted that by increasing matchday revenue this will help them to prosper and challenge the larger teams.

Speaking to the BBC, Mr Mitchell said: "Our aim has got to be to establish ourselves in the Championship over the next three or four years, and why shouldn't Bournemouth go further?We are no different to any other club. We've got a big conurbation - bigger than some Premier League clubs. We have a lot of hard work to do, but I'm not here for a jolly."

The Bournemouth chairman explained that work could begin in less than a month and that the club needs to do its "bit and get that capacity up". Currently the south stand is non-existent and is only accommodated with temporary seating for bigger matches but Mr Mitchell wants the The Cherries to replicate the North Stand which holds around 3,000 but admitted that these things could take time to come to fruition.

Bournemouth wrap up their League One campaign away to Tranmere Rovers on Saturday (April 27th) and could clinch the title with a win.