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For details of the current season, see Bristol Rovers F.C. Season 2007-08 Bristol Rovers Football Club is an English professional Football team, based in Bristol . They currently play in Coca-Cola League One , after defeating Shrewsbury Town 3-1 in the League Two Play-Off Final at Wembley Stadium on May 26 , 2007 .1 The club were founded in 1883 as Black Arabs F.C., and changed their name to '''Eastville Rovers''' in 1884. The name changed again briefly in 1897 to '''Bristol Eastville Rovers''', before finally changing to '''Bristol Rovers''' in 1898.2 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 . Retrieved 16 February 2007 Rovers' current home is the Memorial Stadium , where they have played since 1996. The ground is due to be demolished in late 2007 and rebuilt as an 18,500 capacity All-seater Stadium .3 During the rebuilding process, the team will temporarily play their home games away from the city, at Whaddon Road in Cheltenham .4 HISTORY See Also: History of Bristol Rovers F.C. The club was formed following a meeting at the Eastville Restaurant in Bristol in September 1883 . They initially went by the name Black Arabs F.C., the name coming from the Arabs rugby team and the predominantly black kits in which they played. This name only lasted for the 1883-84 Season , and in a bid to draw more fans from the local area the club was renamed '''Eastville Rovers''' in 1884. The club played only friendly games until the 1887-88 season, when they took part in the 1899 the name was officially changed to Bristol Rovers. In 1899 Bristol Rovers joined the newly-formed Southern League , where they remained until 1920 . For the 1920-21 season, the Southern League teams were moved into the new Football League Third Division , which became the Football League Third Division South the following season. They remained in this division for over 30 years, before winning the league, and promotion in the 1952-53 season. Promotion has been won by the team on three occasions, in 1973-74 from the Third Division to the Second Division, again in 1989-90 as Division Three champions and also in 2006-2007 to the Football League One. The team have been relegated four times in their history - in 1961-62, 1980-81, 1992-93 and most recently at the end of the 2000-01 season, when the team were relegated to the fourth level of league football for the first time in their history. The only major , in 1989-90 and 2006-07, but finished runners-up on both occasions. COLOURS AND BADGE Bristol Rovers are known for their distinctive blue and white quartered shirts, which they have worn for most of their history. The current kit consists of a Dark blue and white quartered shirt, white shorts and dark blue socks. The away kit is green with a black trim, and the third-choice strip is rumoured to be a white shirt with black trim. The goalkeepers shirt for the 2007-08 season will be gold. The team began playing in black shirts with a yellow sash from their foundation in 1883 as Black Arabs F.C. until 1885 , by which time they were called Eastville Rovers. For the next fourteen years, until 1899 , the team wore blue and white hooped shirts. These were replaced by black and white striped shirts until 1919 .
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