Brighton appoint permanent successor to Hope Powell

Brighton have appointed former Bayern Munich and Freiburg coach Jen Scheuer as their permanent successor to Hope Powell, who stepped down suddenly at the end of October.

Powell’s last game was the 8-0 thrashing at the hands of Tottenham, which was a third consecutive WSL defeat without scoring. The Seagulls placed Amy Merricks in charge on an interim basis and immediately bounced back by taking four points from games against West Ham and Liverpool.

Scheuer has signed a three-and-a-half year deal until the summer of 2026, highlighting a determination from Brighton to build a long-term project.

The German coach guided Bayern Munich to the Frauen Bundesliga title and semi-finals of the Champions League in 2021 and now brings all his experience of success to Brighton.

“Brighton is a really young club but one with a great vision. The package from the club, the philosophy, this is the thing I searched for and I can’t wait to get working for this brilliant club,” Scheuer told club media.

“When I first started talking with David [Weir, technical director], I told my agent that I wanted to go to Brighton. When I then met the staff in person it was absolutely clear that I wanted to come and work for these people.

“It’s an honour for me to be here and also to be the first German head coach in the Super League.”

“I’ve seen a lot of reports on the team, watched a lot of the games and I know the team is talented, but I know we have to work hard and to play really intensively – this is what we want to be. We know we are not the biggest club with the most money, but I can promise you we will be the club with the hungriest girls on the pitch.”