Brighton & Hove Albion FC

Brighton and Hove Albion play in the Premier League at the Amex Stadium (31,876) in Falmer, East Sussex, England.

The Amex opened in 2011 after 14 years of planning and legal battles. Brighton had played at Goldstone Ground until 1997, then spent two years sharing Gillingham’s ground 75 miles from home. The journey from homelessness to Europa League football took less than two decades: a consequence of ownership, coaching, and a player recruitment model that became one of the most studied in European football.

Graham Potter arrived in 2019 and turned Brighton into a team that played with more positional intelligence than most clubs with twice the budget. Roberto De Zerbi arrived in 2022 and went further, fielding a passing structure so deliberate that Brighton beat Arsenal, Manchester City, and Liverpool during his first full season. The club finished sixth in 2022-23, their highest ever Premier League placing. Fabian Hurzeler, the 31-year-old German who succeeded De Zerbi in 2024, has maintained the philosophy while accelerating transitions.

The recruitment operation, led by Paul Barber and technical director David Weir, has produced transfers that resemble a printing press. Moises Caicedo arrived for £4 million from Independiente del Valle and left for a British record fee to Chelsea. Marc Cucurella cost £15 million and sold for £60 million. Tariq Lamptey cost nothing and became an England international. Each departure funds the next intake without breaking the structure.

Kaoru Mitoma, the Japan international, arrived in 2022 from Union Saint-Gilloise. His control, balance, and ability to slow a game before accelerating it unexpectedly made him a player supporters in Japan track as a matter of civic pride. Joao Pedro and Evan Ferguson provide the goal threat.

Brighton play on GMT in winter and BST (UTC+1) in summer. A 15:00 kickoff at the Amex is 23:00 in Tokyo and 00:00 in Seoul. Japanese fans following Mitoma check Brighton time regularly. The club has become one of the best-followed English sides in Japan as a direct result.