Evan Joe Ferguson (born 19 October 2004) is an Irish professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

who plays as a striker for

Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...

club

Brighton & Hove Albion Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club (), commonly referred to simply as Brighton, is an English professional football club based in the city of Brighton and Hove. They compete in the Premier League, the top tier of the English football league ...

and the Republic of Ireland national team.

Club career

Early life

A native of

Bettystown Bettystown (), previously known as Betaghstown and transliterated to ''Beattystown/Bettystown'', is a village in an area known as East Meath within County Meath, Ireland. Together with the neighbouring villages of Laytown and Mornington it co ...

County Meath County Meath (; gle, Contae na Mí or simply ) is a county in the Eastern and Midland Region of Ireland, within the province of Leinster. It is bordered by Dublin to the southeast, Louth to the northeast, Kildare to the south, Offaly to the sou ...

, Ferguson is son of former professional footballer

Barry Ferguson Barry Ferguson (born 2 February 1978) is a Scottish football coach, former player and pundit who was most recently the manager of Alloa Athletic. Ferguson spent most of his playing career at Rangers, in two spells either side of a £7.5 mil ...

who played for

Coventry City Coventry City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Coventry, West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. The team currently compete in the EFL Championship, Championship, the second tier of the English footbal ...

Colchester United Colchester United Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Colchester, Essex, England. The team competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1937, the club spent its earl ...

Hartlepool United Hartlepool United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Hartlepool, County Durham, England. The team competes in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. They were founded in 1908 as Hartle ...

Northampton Town Northampton Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Northampton, England. The team plays in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1897, the club competed in the Midland ...

Longford Town Longford () is the county town of County Longford in Ireland. It has a population of 10,008 according to the 2016 census. It is the biggest town in the county and about one third of the county's population lives there. Longford lies at the meet ...

Bohemians Bohemian or Bohemians may refer to: *Anything of or relating to Bohemia Beer * National Bohemian, a brand brewed by Pabst * Bohemian, a brand of beer brewed by Molson Coors Culture and arts * Bohemianism, an unconventional lifestyle, origin ...

Shamrock Rovers Shamrock Rovers Football Club ( ga, Cumann Peile Ruagairí na Seamróige) is an Irish association football club based in Tallaght, South Dublin. The club's senior team competes in the League of Ireland Premier Division and it is the most su ...

and

Sporting Fingal Sporting Fingal Football Club ( ga, Cumann Peile Fine Gall Spórtúil) was an Irish association football club based in Fingal. Between 2008 and 2010, the club played three seasons in the League of Ireland. During their first two seasons they pl ...

during his playing career. He grew up supporting

Manchester United Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...

. Ferguson began playing with the prestigious

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

schoolboy club St Kevin's Boys, before moving on to the youth section of

League of Ireland The League of Ireland ( ga, Sraith na hÉireann), together with the Football Association of Ireland, is one of the two main governing bodies responsible for organising association football in the Republic of Ireland. The term was originally us ...

club

, where he would play in the National Underage Leagues. In December 2020, he scored in his last game at underage level for the club as his side won the

League of Ireland U17 Division The League of Ireland U17 Division is the under-17 division of the League of Ireland. Like the Premier Division, the First Division and the National U19 League the National U17 League is currently sponsored by SSE Airtricity and as a result i ...

, beating rivals

2–0 in the final.

Bohemians

Ferguson made his debut in senior football on 11 July 2019: a 1–1 draw with

Chelsea Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to: Places Australia * Chelsea, Victoria Canada * Chelsea, Nova Scotia * Chelsea, Quebec United Kingdom * Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames ** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...

in a friendly at

Dalymount Park Dalymount Park (Irish: ''Páirc Cnocán Uí Dhálaigh'') is a football stadium in Phibsborough on the Northside of Dublin, Ireland. It is the home of Bohemian F.C., who have played there since the early 20th century. Affectionately known as D ...

, aged just 14 at the time which made him the club's youngest ever player at senior level. His competitive debut in senior football came on 20 September 2019, replacing

Luke Wade-Slater Luke Keith Wade-Slater (born 2 March 1998) is an Irish footballer who plays for Drogheda United in the League of Ireland Premier Division. Club career Stevenage Wade-Slater joined Stevenage as an academy scholar in the summer of 2015, having pr ...

late on against Derry City at the

Ryan McBride Brandywell Stadium The Ryan McBride Brandywell Stadium ( ga, Tobar an Fhíoruisce ) is a municipal football stadium with an adjoining greyhound racing track in Derry, Northern Ireland. It is the home ground of League of Ireland team Derry City F.C. and (temporaril ...

. Ferguson's first goals at senior level came on 28 January 2020, scoring two goals in a 4–2 pre-season friendly win over

Drogheda United Drogheda United Football Club ( ga, Cumann Peile Dhroichead Átha Aontaithe) is a semi-professional Irish association football club based in Drogheda, County Louth playing in the League of Ireland Premier Division. They play their home matches ...

. He would go on to make four competitive appearances in total over his two seasons at the club.

Brighton & Hove Albion

In January 2021, he signed for the

academy An academy ( Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy ...

, who beat fellow

club

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

to his signature. On 24 August 2021, he made his first team debut, replacing

Enock Mwepu Enock Mwepu (born 1 January 1998) is a Zambian former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. Having begun his career in his native Zambia, Mwepu signed for Austrian club Red Bull Salzburg in 2017 before moving Brighton & Hove Alb ...

in the 81st minute of a 2–0 win away against

Championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this system ...

side

Cardiff City Cardiff City Football Club ( cy, Clwb Pêl-droed Dinas Caerdydd) is a professional association football club based in Cardiff, Wales. It competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1899 as R ...

in the EFL Cup second round. On 6 September, he was nominated for the

Premier League 2 The Professional Development League is a system of youth football leagues that are managed, organised and controlled by the Premier League or by the Football League. It was introduced by the Football Association via the Elite Player Performanc ...

Player of the Month award for August. He scored his first ever professional goal, scoring Brighton under-23s equaliser in an eventual 2–1 away win at

League Two The English Football League Two (often referred to as League Two for short or Sky Bet League Two for sponsorship purposes, and known as the Football League Two from 2004 until 2016) is the third and lowest division of the English Football Lea ...

side

Northampton Northampton () is a market town and civil parish in the East Midlands of England, on the River Nene, north-west of London and south-east of Birmingham. The county town of Northamptonshire, Northampton is one of the largest towns in England; ...

in the

EFL Trophy The English Football League Trophy, known for sponsorship purposes as the Papa Johns Trophy after restaurant chain Papa John's Pizza, is an annual English association football knockout competition open to all clubs in EFL League One and EFL Le ...

on 2 November. Ferguson won his club's goal of the month competition for November 2021 for his goal against Everton U23s at

Goodison Park Goodison Park is a football stadium in the Walton area of Liverpool, England. It has been the home stadium of Premier League club Everton F.C. since its completion in 1892. Located in a residential area 2 miles (3 km) north of Liverpool ...

. His first involvement in a matchday squad in the Premier League came on 15 December 2021, when he was an unused substitute in the home defeat against

Wolverhampton Wanderers Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club (), commonly known as Wolves, is a professional football club based in Wolverhampton, England, which compete in the . The club has played at Molineux Stadium since moving from Dudley Road in 1889. The club's ...

. Ferguson made a second appearance of the season for the senior side on 8 January 2022, coming on as a 76th-minute substitute where he assisted

Jakub Moder Jakub Piotr Moder (; born 7 April 1999) is a Polish professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Premier League club Brighton & Hove Albion and the Poland national team. Club career Early career Moder was born in Szczecinek. He be ...

's equaliser in the eventual 2–1 – after extra-time — away victory over

West Bromwich Albion West Bromwich Albion Football Club () is an English professional football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was formed in 1878 and has pla ...

of the Championship in the FA Cup third round. Four weeks later, Ferguson made another substitute appearance again coming in the FA Cup, this time away at

Tottenham Hotspur Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as Tottenham () or Spurs, is a professional association football, football club based in Tottenham, London, England. It competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English footba ...

on 5 February, in a 3–1 defeat for the Seagulls. On 19 February 2022, Ferguson made his Premier League debut for Brighton, coming on as a substitute in the 3–0 home loss against bottom side

Burnley Burnley () is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Burnley in Lancashire, England, with a 2001 population of 73,021. It is north of Manchester and east of Preston, at the confluence of the River Calder and River Bru ...

. On 24 August 2022, Ferguson scored his first ''Albion'' goal himself, set up by fellow academy player Cameron Peupion, in the 90+4th minute of the 3–0 away win over

League One The English Football League One (often referred to as League One for short or Sky Bet League One for sponsorship purposes, and known as the Football League One from 2004 until 2016) is the second-highest division of the English Football Leag ...

side

Forest Green Rovers Forest Green Rovers Football Club are a professional football club based in Nailsworth, Gloucestershire, England. The team compete in , the third tier of the English football league system, and have played their home games at The New Lawn since ...

in the

EFL Cup The EFL Cup (referred to historically, and colloquially, as the League Cup), currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual knockout competition and major trophy in men's domestic football in England. Organised by the ...

second round. On 19 October 2022, on his 18th birthday, Ferguson signed his first long-term professional contract at Brighton, keeping him at the club until 2026. On 31 December, in the 4–2 home loss against

Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...

, he made his third Premier League appearance from the bench for Brighton where he scored his first career league goal. At 18 years old he became both Ireland and Brighton's youngest ever Premier League goalscorer. Three days later on 3 January 2023, Ferguson started his first Premier League match, scoring again in the 4–1 away victory over Everton. On 25 April, Ferguson committed his future to Brighton after signing a long-term contract until 2028. After a successful breakthrough season scoring 10 goals in 25 appearances Ferguson went on to win Brighton's Young Player of the Season at the end of season awards. Ferguson opened his goal account for the 2023–24 season in the opening game on 12 August, after coming on as a substitute he netted a 90+5th minute effort to seal a 4–1 home win over Premier League newcomers

Luton Town Luton Town Football Club () is a professional association football club based in the town of Luton, Bedfordshire, England, that competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1885, it is nicknam ...

International career

Ferguson has represented the Republic of Ireland at under-15, under-17 & under-21 youth level. On 27 August 2021, he was called up alongside Brighton teammate Andrew Moran to the Republic of Ireland U21 for the first time, for the 2023 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualifiers against

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and H ...

Luxembourg Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small lan ...

. He made his U21 debut in a 2–0 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina in

Zenica Zenica ( ; ; ) is a city in Bosnia and Herzegovina and an administrative and economic center of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina's Zenica-Doboj Canton. It is located in the Bosna (river), Bosna river valley, about north of Sarajevo. Th ...

. Ferguson was called up to the senior squad for the first time in November 2022, for friendlies against

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

and

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

, with the 18-year-old describing that he was "absolutely buzzing" with being selected. He made his senior debut against Norway on 17 November, coming on as a 89th minute substitute for goalscorer

Alan Browne Alan Browne (born 23 January 1974) is an Irish retired hurler who played for Cork Senior Championship club Blackrock. He played for the Cork senior hurling team for 9 years, during which time he usually lined out as a forward. Browne began ...

in the 2–1 home defeat. Ferguson made his first start on 22 March 2023, against

Latvia Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...

at the

Aviva Stadium Aviva Stadium (also known as Lansdowne Road) is a sports stadium located in Dublin, Ireland, with a capacity for 51,700 spectators (all seated). It is built on the site of the former Lansdowne Road Stadium, which was demolished in 2007, and r ...

in Dublin in a friendly. He scored Ireland's second goal of the game on 17 minutes, from a knockback by

Michael Obafemi Michael Oluwadurotimi Obafemi (born 6 July 2000) is an Irish professional footballer who plays as a striker for EFL Championship club Swansea City and the Irish national team. Early life Obafemi was born in Dublin to Nigerian parents. Wh ...

. Ireland won the game 3–2, with Ferguson being replaced by

Troy Parrott Troy Daniel Parrott (born 4 February 2002) is an Irish professional footballer who plays as a forward for Preston North End, on loan from Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur. He also represents the Republic of Ireland national team at senior ...

after 73 minutes. Ferguson scored his first competitive goal for Ireland during a 3–0 victory over

Gibraltar ) , anthem = " God Save the King" , song = " Gibraltar Anthem" , image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg , map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe , map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green , mapsize = , image_map2 = Gib ...

in the Aviva stadium in a Euro 2024 qualifier.

Career statistics

Club

International

:''Scores and results list the Republic of Ireland's goal tally first.''

Honours

Bohemian F.C. U-17 * League of Ireland U-17 Division: 2020 Individual *

Young Player of the Season: 2022–23

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ferguson, Evan Living people 2004 births Men's association football forwards Republic of Ireland men's youth international footballers Association footballers from County Meath Republic of Ireland men's association footballers Irish people of English descent Bohemian F.C. players Brighton & Hove Albion F.C. players League of Ireland players Premier League players Expatriate men's footballers in England Republic of Ireland expatriate men's association footballers Republic of Ireland men's under-21 international footballers Irish expatriate sportspeople in England Republic of Ireland men's international footballers