Brighton's Fabian Hurzeler: The art dealer who went from boos to Europe's hottest manager
Fabian Hurzeler has gone from being serenaded with chants of "you're getting sacked in the morning" by his own supporters to being one of the most coveted young coaches in European football - and Brighton are reaping the rewards of not panicking.
When Brighton lost at home to Crystal Palace in February, the German was booed by his own fans. The 1-0 defeat by their fierce rivals left the Seagulls floundering 14th in the table with just one win in 12 Premier League matches.
"There are only two options," Hurzeler said afterwards. "Give up or keep pushing harder, and that's always the option I choose in my life."
Eight months on, Palace return to the Amex Stadium on Sunday (14:00 BST kick-off) to face opponents sitting third in the table following statement wins over defending champions Arsenal and Europa League winners Aston Villa. Hurzeler's stock has rocketed after 11 wins in 18 top-flight games, a run that has propelled Brighton back into Europe - and left the same supporters who shouted "you don't know what you're doing" at him a few months ago worried that he could be lured away.
From Pipinsried and paintings to the Premier League
Hurzeler became the youngest permanent manager in Premier League history when he was appointed in June 2024 at the age of 31, arriving from St Pauli after guiding the Hamburg club back to the Bundesliga following a 13-year absence.
His route there was anything but conventional. Born in Houston, Texas, before moving to Germany at the age of two, Hurzeler saw a professional playing career cut short by injuries after spells in the reserves at Bayern Munich, Hoffenheim and 1860 Munich. In 2016 he accepted a player-manager role at German fifth-tier village club Pipinsried, about 30 miles from Munich, at the age of 23.
To make ends meet he worked for an art dealer, selling paintings to wealthy Bavarians - and was eventually fired from that job because he spent too much time watching football. In a 2024 interview with the Guardian, he drew a direct line between the two trades.
"If you want to sell something to a person, you have to try to convince them by doing something," he said. "And you can't go there and say: 'Look at this picture, it's an amazing picture'. You have to understand the needs and the wishes from the clients. That's a little bit similar to being a coach.
"The most important thing is to understand the person behind the player. What are his needs? What are his values? How is he educated? How was his past? Where does he get education?"
His obsession with learning was evident at St Pauli, too: while managing the club he was invited to Tottenham's training ground to watch Ange Postecoglou's side train, and asked so many questions that Postecoglou had to ask another member of his coaching staff to step in. He also picked up tips from Roberto De Zerbi at Brighton a few months before replacing him, after Kieran McKenna opted to stay at newly promoted Ipswich.
'Wet behind the ears' - and a 7-0 hammering
Hurzeler's time at Brighton, despite respectable back-to-back eighth-placed finishes, has not been without difficult moments. Alongside the fan anger last season, the Seagulls were thrashed 7-0 at Nottingham Forest in his first campaign in charge, while former Arsenal and England defender Martin Keown labelled him "wet behind the ears" on the BBC's Final Score following Brighton's 4-2 defeat at Chelsea in September 2024.
Former Brighton striker Glenn Murray told BBC Sport that the adversity has been instructive.
"You learn more about yourself and the people around you when you are losing games," Murray said. "Hurzeler has come out the other side and the way he has got this group of players performing is exceptional."
Back to basics - and a relentless press
Scott McCarthy, of the We Are Brighton fan site, said Hurzeler had appeared to have lost the crowd to such a degree at one stage last season that even a few wins would not have repaired the relationship.
"He looked like a manager who was out of ideas," McCarthy told BBC Sport. "Leaving the stadium after losing at home to Palace, the only conversation fans were having was: 'he has got to go'. It's totally different now. It's worked out phenomenally."
Asked to explain the turnaround, McCarthy pointed to a pragmatic shift.
"It's partly because Hurzeler went back to basics," he said. "He relied on an experienced core in the side to get out of the hole, which is testament to him because it shows his pragmatic side. You get managers who are wedded to their philosophy and won't change. Hurzeler realised what he was doing was not working and that it could cost him his job, so tried something else. You can now see this is a team more in his image, because they press insanely."
That pressing identity has already produced one of the season's standout results. Prior reporting dated 9 October 2026 described how Hurzeler's side refused to sit in a low block against Arsenal and instead sprang a man-to-man press to win 3-0, a defeat Mikel Arteta called a "big lesson". Brighton had already begun their European campaign, with prior reporting dated 15 October 2026 noting his demand for a "dirty atmosphere" at the Amex ahead of the club's Conference League opener against Kauno Zalgiris.
Will a big club come calling?
Following last Saturday's win at Sunderland, there was chatter on post-match phone-ins that Hurzeler - rewarded with a new long-term contract running to 2029 before the end of last season and given £150m to spend on signings in the summer - could be a prime target for a big club looking for a manager, with reported interest from Manchester United.
McCarthy, though, believes Brighton can keep him.
"I personally don't think he will go," he said. "The money would obviously be tempting but he is a very intelligent guy. He didn't become a Premier League manager at the age of 31 without having his head screwed on. Does he want to go to another club where he isn't going to get time? What has happened at Brighton has shown he needs two-and-a-half-years to build a squad."
The alternative is writing his name into club folklore by delivering Champions League football to the Amex.
Pipinsried has not been forgotten
Back at Pipinsried, Hurzeler's name is still revered - and he has not forgotten where the journey began.
"Yes, he does enjoy coming back every now and then - to see if everything's in order," Sepp Ankner, the club's chief finance officer, told The Athletic in 2024. "When he does, he talks to everybody. He's really retained that connection with Pipinsried."
But his rapid ascent means gilded surroundings might not be far away for Europe's hottest managerial property.