Brighton went 14 years without a home ground before climbing to the Premier League
In 1997 Brighton sold their stadium to pay debts, avoided dropping out of the Football League only through a late equaliser on the final day, and spent two seasons playing home games about 70 miles away in Kent. Two decades later the Seagulls were in the Premier League, in a new stadium of their own.
Founded in 1901, Brighton & Hove Albion made their name in the Southern League, where they won the FA Charity Shield in 1910 by beating Football League champions Aston Villa, still their only national honour. They joined the Football League's new Third Division in 1920. Chairman Mike Bamber, in charge from 1972, famously lured Brian Clough in 1973, and under manager Alan Mullery the club reached the First Division in 1979.
The 1982-83 season delivered both heartbreak and fame. Brighton were relegated, yet also made their first FA Cup final, where Manchester United were held 2-2. In the last moments of extra time Gordon Smith had a chance to win it, prompting the commentator Peter Jones to say Smith must score; the goalkeeper Gary Bailey saved, and Brighton lost the replay.
Decline followed. By the mid-1990s the club was sliding down the divisions and in deep financial trouble, and directors sold the Goldstone Ground, home for most of the century. On the last day of the 1996-97 season Brighton, once 13 points adrift, played Hereford United, the team just below them, needing a draw. An own goal put them behind before Robbie Reinelt's late strike kept them in the league. There followed two seasons at Gillingham's Priestfield Stadium and then years at Withdean, a converted athletics track.
Revival came in stages: back-to-back titles in 2001 and 2002, and in 2009 Tony Bloom became chairman, securing 93 million pounds for a new stadium at Falmer. It opened in 2011 with a win over Doncaster Rovers, the last visitors to the Goldstone in 1997. Under Chris Hughton, after an 18-match unbeaten start, Brighton clinched promotion to the Premier League on 17 April 2017. Their fiercest rivalry, with Crystal Palace, dates from the 1970s.
Source: Brighton & Hove Albion F.C.
