‘I never could have dreamt it’ – Fran Kirby on Brighton Women’s plans for historic new purpose-built stadium

“Having things like this in the pipeline just shows to everyone out there in women’s football and women’s sport that this club is taking women’s football seriously,” Kirby added.

“They want to keep pushing, they want to keep growing. And ultimately, the owner has said what his ambitions are for the women’s club.

“He wants to get top four, he wants to try and break into Europe. And for us to be able to stand here and know we’re going to have this stadium. It will help us do that, I truly believe that.”

The new stadium, expected to cost between £75-80 million, will be just one of three purpose-built Women’s football stadiums worldwide, joining Kansas City Current (already playing at CPKC Stadium) and Denver Summit (build in progress).

The ‘built for her’ strategy means the stadium will be built around the needs of female athletes and the culture and demographic of the women’s game.

The site was acquired in 2025 and sits adjacent to the American Express Stadium. It has been designed with a minimum capacity of 10,000 and will be connected to the Amex via a new bridge.

“What I really like about the new stadium is that it’s next to the men’s stadium,” Kirby added. “It’s going to be a hub for football in Brighton. It’s not just going to be the men’s team play there, the women’s team play there – it’s just going to be Brighton play there.

“And I think that’s really big in terms of keeping the club connected. We have it at the training ground and now we have it with our home stadium as well.

“That’s a huge statement from the club in terms of how they view Brighton as a whole rather than as a men’s and women’s club.”