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Management Johan Lange - Technical Director

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Brian Fantana said:
This bloke was at the scum when Vinai was there....no, never heard of him either!

www.nytimes.com

Brighton sporting director Jason Ayto leaves club after nine months

Ayto only joined the south-coast club in September having previously spent more than a decade at Woolwich.
www.nytimes.com www.nytimes.com
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Just posted in the transfer thread

Jason Ayto has left Brighton & Hove Albion after just nine months as sporting director.
Ayto became the club’s first sporting director in September 2025 in a revamp of senior roles. The 41-year-old replaced technical director David Weir, who now holds that position at Strasbourg.
Ayto previously worked at Woolwich for over a decade in a variety of positions, including assistant technical director and interim sporting director.
Brighton chairman Tony Bloom said in a statement on Wednesday: “I’d like to thank Jason for everything he has done for us, and to wish him well for the future.”

Ayto was due to oversee his first summer transfer window, working with Mike Cave on Brighton’s transfer business. Cave was promoted from assistant technical director to technical director when Weir left and Ayto arrived.
Cave will oversee all sporting areas of the club, working with the existing senior team and reporting to chief executive Paul Barber. The summer window opens on June 15.
Ayto left Woolwich last summer after 11 years at the club, having previously worked as a scout, and subsequently the north London club’s chief scout.
The Athletic reported that Ayto had been a strong contender for the permanent position at Woolwich, but former Atletico Madrid executive Andrea Berta was ultimately appointed in the role.
Always think its a bit telling when the comment is a single sentence
“I’d like to thank Jason for everything he has done for us, and to wish him well for the future.”

Although there must have been a reason they hired him in the first place, and given the high regard Brighton are held in...

Never heard of the guy though, and clearly wouldnt fit the "world class operator" we allegedly want

Still, wouldnt put it past Vinai...
 
postbox said:
Just posted in the transfer thread

Jason Ayto has left Brighton & Hove Albion after just nine months as sporting director.
Ayto became the club’s first sporting director in September 2025 in a revamp of senior roles. The 41-year-old replaced technical director David Weir, who now holds that position at Strasbourg.
Ayto previously worked at Woolwich for over a decade in a variety of positions, including assistant technical director and interim sporting director.
Brighton chairman Tony Bloom said in a statement on Wednesday: “I’d like to thank Jason for everything he has done for us, and to wish him well for the future.”

Ayto was due to oversee his first summer transfer window, working with Mike Cave on Brighton’s transfer business. Cave was promoted from assistant technical director to technical director when Weir left and Ayto arrived.
Cave will oversee all sporting areas of the club, working with the existing senior team and reporting to chief executive Paul Barber. The summer window opens on June 15.
Ayto left Woolwich last summer after 11 years at the club, having previously worked as a scout, and subsequently the north London club’s chief scout.
The Athletic reported that Ayto had been a strong contender for the permanent position at Woolwich, but former Atletico Madrid executive Andrea Berta was ultimately appointed in the role.
Always think its a bit telling when the comment is a single sentence
“I’d like to thank Jason for everything he has done for us, and to wish him well for the future.”

Although there must have been a reason they hired him in the first place, and given the high regard Brighton are held in...

Never heard of the guy though, and clearly wouldnt fit the "world class operator" we allegedly want

Still, wouldnt put it past Vinai...
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
Some Brighton fans on Reddit speculate that he left due to a clash of strategies between Ayto and the rest of the Brighton leadership.

Interesting none the less.
 
postbox said:
Just posted in the transfer thread

Jason Ayto has left Brighton & Hove Albion after just nine months as sporting director.
Ayto became the club’s first sporting director in September 2025 in a revamp of senior roles. The 41-year-old replaced technical director David Weir, who now holds that position at Strasbourg.
Ayto previously worked at Woolwich for over a decade in a variety of positions, including assistant technical director and interim sporting director.
Brighton chairman Tony Bloom said in a statement on Wednesday: “I’d like to thank Jason for everything he has done for us, and to wish him well for the future.”

Ayto was due to oversee his first summer transfer window, working with Mike Cave on Brighton’s transfer business. Cave was promoted from assistant technical director to technical director when Weir left and Ayto arrived.
Cave will oversee all sporting areas of the club, working with the existing senior team and reporting to chief executive Paul Barber. The summer window opens on June 15.
Ayto left Woolwich last summer after 11 years at the club, having previously worked as a scout, and subsequently the north London club’s chief scout.
The Athletic reported that Ayto had been a strong contender for the permanent position at Woolwich, but former Atletico Madrid executive Andrea Berta was ultimately appointed in the role.
Always think its a bit telling when the comment is a single sentence
“I’d like to thank Jason for everything he has done for us, and to wish him well for the future.”

Although there must have been a reason they hired him in the first place, and given the high regard Brighton are held in...

Never heard of the guy though, and clearly wouldnt fit the "world class operator" we allegedly want

Still, wouldnt put it past Vinai...
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Click to shrink...

That did occur to me too. I'm not convinced they're really looking for anyone to come in. I think it's a bit of a bluff.
 
postbox said:
Any context around that?

I can imagine him wanting to spend bigger (coming from Woolwich) and clashing with the buy low/sell high Brighton ethos
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All speculation from the brighton fans obviously but more or less that yeah. They speculate that Ayto wanted to bring in more established names like he did at Woolwich, whilst Brighton want to continue scouting mainly lesser knowns and youths.
 
ElTel said:

View: https://youtu.be/WQp3ZO-Ulck?si=gTl99HzS0dy9lPIU

Bit boring but he doesnt seem to be a Woolwich fan, just worked for them for a long time.

Dreary type that wound work well with Lange :langetroll:
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I would be very surprised if big sports clubs had "must be a fan of the club" as a employment requirement tbf.

I've told this story before on here, but one of my childhood friends is head of sponsorships and sales at a decently big Swedish hockey club (constant in the top flight, tend to produce NHL players at a okay clip etc). But he is a childhood fan of their closest rival. Which he described as awkward at first but if he wants to work in the sport he has to put the fandom aside for as long as he is employed.
 
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