Bristol Rovers F.C. are a professional football club in Bristol, England. They compete in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. They play home matches at the Memorial Stadium in Horfield, they have been competing there since 1996. They spent 89 years in the heart of North Bristol between 1897 to 1986 at the Eastville Stadium. Following a sale of the land they spent ten years at Twerton Park in Bath. The club's official nickname is "The Pirates", reflecting the maritime history of Bristol. The local nickname of the club is "The Gas", derived from the gasworks next to their former home, Eastville Stadium. This nickname originally began as a derogatory term used by fans of their main rivals, Bristol City, but was affectionately adopted by the club and its supporters. Cardiff City and Swindon Town are considered their second and third biggest rivals. Other rivalries include; Cheltenham Town, Exeter City, Forest Green Rovers, Plymouth Argyle, Torquay United and Yeovil Town. These rivalries are considered West Country Derbies and are often heated encounters. The women's team play in the Gloucestershire County Women's League.
The club was founded in 1883 as Black Arabs F.C., and were also known as Eastville Rovers and Bristol Eastville Rovers before finally changing its name to Bristol Rovers in 1899. The club's official nickname is The Pirates, reflecting the maritime history of Bristol. The local nickname of the club is The Gas, from the gasworks next to their former home Eastville Stadium, which started as a derogatory term used by fans of their main rival Bristol City but was affectionately adopted by the team. According to a survey conducted in December 2003, Cardiff City and Swindon Town are considered their second and third biggest rivals. Rovers contest the Bristol derby against Bristol City and the Severnside derby against Cardiff.
Rovers were admitted to the Football League in 1920 and maintained their league status until relegation in 2014. They previously came close to losing their league status in 1939, when they were re-elected after finishing bottom of Division Three (South), and in 2002 when the team finished one league position away from relegation to the Football Conference. Their highest finishing positions were in 1956 and 1959, on both occasions ending the season in 6th place in Division Two, then the second tier of English football.
Hussain AlSaeed
Tom Gorringe (CEO)
Current season
Bristol Rovers Football Club
EFL League Two 2025–26
