Brighton aren't here to make up the numbers anymore — and this squad rebuild, quiet as it looks on paper, makes a genuine case for why they belong in that top half conversation.
Last season's FA Cup final appearance at Wembley was the clearest signal yet that Dario Vidosic's project is real. They lost to Manchester City, yes, but they also beat City in the league — one of only three sides to manage that — and drew with Arsenal. That's not luck. That's a team that knows how to turn up when it matters. The problem was doing it consistently enough, and that inconsistency cost them.
The Signings That Actually Matter
Seven arrivals, four departures. That's a net gain that doesn't disrupt what Vidosic has built across his two seasons in charge. He's now the second-longest serving manager in the WSL, and that continuity shows in how measured this window has been.
The headline move is Lia Wälti, and it's deserved. The 33-year-old Switzerland captain spent seven years at Arsenal, picking up a WSL title and a Champions League winners' medal before a year at Juventus. She comes back to England with her reading of the game as sharp as ever — she guided Switzerland to the Euro 2025 quarter-finals — and if Brighton can keep her fit, she fundamentally changes how they control a match. Her own words put it well: Brighton aren't favourites going into every game, but they can hurt the big sides. She's seen that from the other end.
Gabby George adds defensive experience alongside her, while Emily Murphy and Nadia Krezyman — Republic of Ireland and Poland internationals respectively — bring attacking youth and ambition. Sophie Peskett, who made 127 appearances for Ipswich and helped them earn promotion to WSL 2 twice, is a sharp, purposeful winger who should contribute to an attack that has honestly needed more bodies.
The Problem They Haven't Solved
Here's where we have to be straight with Brighton: the striker issue hasn't gone away. Michelle Agyemang's ACL injury last season left a hole they never properly filled. Kiko Seike finished as their top league scorer with eight goals, and she was their only player in the WSL's top 20 for goals and assists combined. Eight goals as your highest return, from a winger, is not a title-chasing return.
What makes this stranger is the underlying numbers. No side in the WSL had stronger shot accuracy than Brighton last season — they were hitting the target consistently. They just weren't converting. Only three teams turned a lower proportion of their on-target efforts into goals. That's a finishing problem, not a chance-creation problem, which suggests it's somewhat fixable — but adding a clinical centre-forward before the window shuts would sharpen this squad considerably.
They open at home to Arsenal on 6 September, which is a proper test right out of the gate. [Our look at this season's Aston Villa preview](/getohedz/football/womens-super-league-2026-27-preview-no-2-aston-villa) gives a sense of the competition Brighton will be up against in that sixth-place bracket.
Off the pitch, Pinterest have signed as the first solo sponsor of the women's team on a four-year deal, and plans are in place for a purpose-built women's stadium next to the Amex, targeted for the 2030-31 season.
Our take: sixth feels right, but it's the floor not the ceiling. Sort the striker situation and Brighton can push higher. Leave it unresolved and last season's inconsistency returns.