Bournemouth will not be increasing the capacity of their Goldsands Stadium in time for their first season in the Premier League.
The stadium can seat only 11,700, and it was widely expected work would begin to meet the need for rising ticket demand soon after the south-coast club had sealed their first-ever promotion to the top flight.
But other obligatory improvements to the stadium's infrastructure must be completed to meet with Premier League criteria, and the club claim it will not be possible to increase the number of seats in time for the 2015-16 season.
"When all of the factors were weighed up, it just wasn't feasible to push ahead with expansion of the stadium," chief executive Neill Blake told the club's official website.
"There are a vast number of demands for change behind the scenes placed on any club following promotion to the Premier League, and we have to ensure we meet those demands in time for next season.
BREAKING: #afcb confirm stadium capacity will remain at 11,700 for the 2015/16 season: http://t.co/31c3EwSQ13 pic.twitter.com/GdbZgjrwmC
- AFC Bournemouth (@afcbournemouth) May 18, 2015
"It will take a great deal of planning, time and hard work to meet the guidelines within the space of the next few months, and factoring in the expansion of the South Stand as well was virtually impossible.
"There are also well known complications with the land behind the South Stand, due to it being a former waste tip.
"With intensive testing necessary before any building work can be done, something which can take months to complete, this was one of the major stumbling blocks in our proposed plans.
"In addition, our first priority is to invest in the squad and football staff infrastructure to support [manager] Eddie [Howe] and his coaching staff, which we believe is the best strategy to maintain our Premier League status.
"If we are able to retain our place in the Premier League, stadium capacity will be a priority for the following season."