The Brighton manager, Dario Vidosic, is to leave the Women’s Super League club a little over a week before the start of the new season, multiple sources have told the Guardian.

The Guardian understands Vidosic is the leading candidate for the Angel City head coach role with a view to starting work before the 2027 NWSL season.

Vidosic has been in charge of Brighton for two years and led them to their first Wembley appearance in May’s Women’s FA Cup final. The departure of the 39-year-old Croatia-born Australian, which was first reported by the Daily Telegraph, is understood to have surprised many members of Brighton’s squad.

Brighton, who open their WSL campaign with the visit of Arsenal on 6 September, did not wish to comment on the news when contacted.

Angel City have been led by their interim head coach, Leif Smerud, the former Crystal Palace manager, since June’s departure of Alexander Straus.

Sources close to Angel City have said the club are very happy with Smerud leading the team for the rest of this season. The Los Angeles-based team are ninth, two points off the playoffs.

Vidosic is understood to be greatly admired by Angel City. The Australian led Brighton to a fifth in England’s top division in 2025, before a seventh-placed finish last term. He has been popular with their supporters and his exit comes as a blow.

A spokesperson for Angel City said: “We are making progress with finalists for our head coach position. We are not planning to appoint a head coach until after the end of this season. We are proud of the team’s development and remain focused on finishing the 2026 season strong.”

Vidosic, a former Australia midfielder, has also managed Melbourne City Women.