Brighton College is delighted to have received an unprecedented three accolades in The Sunday Times Parent Power Schools Guide: UK Boarding School of the Year 2025, Top School of the Year for A-levels 2025 and Top Academic School in South East England 2025.
The Sunday Times rankings also place Brighton College as the Top Co-Educational School in the UK.
Pupils benefit from first-class sporting facilities and guidance from our top coaches, many of whom have represented their country at the Olympic and Commonwealth Games.
Our incredible sporting facilities enable us to offer a huge range of games options, ensuring that all pupils can enjoy exercise, find their passion and, if they wish, strive to excel in their chosen sport. By devoting time and attention to those who are less confident, as well as to those with more experience, we develop life skills that bring resilience and success beyond school life.
Rugby
Physical literacy and fundamental movement are at the heart of our rugby programme; we focus on learning and development, encouraging a love of the sport through support both on and off the field. Eight Old Brightonians are currently playing in the Premiership, with Marcus Smith playing fly-half for England and the British and Irish Lions.
Hockey
16 teams of all abilities across the Hockey Club have the opportunity to play on a strong school fixture circuit. Our A teams test themselves against the very best in their respective England Hockey Tier 1 outdoor and indoor competitions, and five of our pupils are currently representing their nation. We also run midweek fixtures to allow for club hockey on Saturdays.
Netball
We field 25 teams for all abilities and enter local and national tournaments. All training programmes, regardless of level, are focussed on the development of sport intelligence and versatility in game play. Brighton College has close links with several high performing clubs and has players that are part of both the Surrey Storm and London Pulse pathways. We enjoy close links with university netball programmes and national teams, including the England Roses Academy.
Cricket
Cricket is our main summer sport for boys and girls and we have several pupils playing for their county. We are ranked by The Cricketer as one of the top schools in the country for cricket and won the BOWS Cricket Festival in 2024. We are proud to have been instrumental in developing competitive cricket for girls, and have produced national players in both the women’s and the men’s game, including Clare Connor CBE, Sarah Taylor and Matt Prior.
Swimming
We offer routes into competitive swimming, water polo and triathlon, coached by an Olympian swimmer. Our stunning 25m swimming pool is an unrivalled facility, and offers opportunities for those wanting to develop, improve, or compete at elite-level competitions. With six squad sessions each week, pupils have the opportunity to swim before, during and after school.
Football
Our Football Club is the most successful in the Sussex/Kent School League. We compete in national competitions, including the ISFA and ESFA Cup, as well as County Cup competitions. Pupils travel to professional clubs each year, including Porto and Manchester City, preparing them for the season ahead. We have a thriving girls' football club at the College, who regularly play competitive matches.
Athletics
Our Athletics Club has an unrivalled reputation for producing excellent and conditioned athletes. Pupils are coached by experts in every discipline and compete in fixtures against other top sporting schools. Many pupils go on to compete at national and international tournaments, including the Commonwealth Games.
Tennis
With over 200 pupils playing on a weekly basis, tennis is played across a range of abilities, with all teams enjoying success on the competitive circuit in national and regional competitions. Specialist coaching is delivered by highly qualified tennis coaches.
Basketball
Basketball is the fastest growing sport in the College, with regular competitive fixtures. Our U18 team is enjoying great success and competes in the National Schools Competition. Pupils also enjoy basketball as a social activity in the evenings, and has the best spectator atmosphere in the College.
Volleyball
With our proximity to the beach, we make the most of the sunshine in the annual Independent Schools Beach Volleyall Competition, hosted by us at our local seaside sand courts. As current champions, we hone our skills off-season in our sports hall, and pupils take part in beach tournaments across the country each year. Beach volleyball is one of the most popular co-educational options in the Sixth Form.
Athletic Development
Our dedicated strength and conditioning suite is at the heart of our Athletic Development Programme. We offer a broad range of sessions during the day, in the evening and at the weekend. All sessions are led by our expert staff, whether to help in the sporting ambitions of pupils or, more holistically, to help pupils improve their wellbeing.
Karate
The popular Brighton College Karate Dojo has self-development at its core, with pupils not only becoming proficient martial artists, but also developing essential skills such as resilience and greater self-awareness. Pupils successfully pass grading examinations, with commitment and great enthusiasm.
Other Sports
Other popular sports include badminton, bouldering, fencing and table tennis, with pupils playing at elite levels as well as for pleasure.
As one of the leading sporting schools in England, our talented pupils regularly achieve regional and national honours, and pupils have gone on to achieve incredible sporting success after leaving Brighton College. Both our pupils and Old Brightonians have represented their countries at top events, including the Paris Olympics and Commonwealth Games.
Old Brightonians have achieved incredible sporting heights. A few of the many highlights include Marcus Smith proudly representing England Rugby; Toby Harries being part of the Men's 4 x 400m Relay team at the Paris 2024 Olympics; Clare Connor CBE captained the England Women’s cricket team, winning the Ashes; Matt Prior also won the Ashes as part of the England Men’s team; and Ruby Jerges is England’s senior U20 girls long jump champion.
Both our girls’ and boys’ 1st XI cricket teams recently won the prestigious BOWS Festival tournament, our outstanding 1st, 2nd and 3rd XV rugby teams won every match in the recent Michaelmas and Hilary terms and Miles won silver in the 800m for Team England at the U18 Commonwealth Games last year. Our 1st XI Hockey team are St George’s Sixes Champions, Independent Schools Hockey Cup bronze medallists and Tier 1 national quarter-finalists. The netball 1st VII team are winners of the County Round of the National Schools Cup. Our tennis club won two Sussex Shield trophies last year and in swimming, pupils compete in national and world championships, with Aran U15 British champion in the 100m/200m backstroke and Astrid top in the county for U15 backstroke/individual medley.
With world-class coaches and sporting facilities, that are regularly used by national teams for training, Brighton College is the place to come for sporting success.
Our world-class sports facilities are suited to players of all sports and abilities and are a testament to the central role that sport plays at Brighton College. Our commitment to providing sport for everyone means pupils can enjoy their activity of choice in a world-class training environment.
Our 25-metre swimming pool in the heart of the School of Science and Sport.
A world-class dedicated strength and conditioning suite.
A stunning multi-purpose sports space, with floor to ceiling windows looking onto the Home Ground.
Our Home Ground includes two rugby pitches and two cricket greens, as well as an outdoor basketball court and cricket pavilion. In addition to games classes and weekly fixtures, it is also used by England Rugby for their training.
Our award-winning Jubilee Pavilion and sports fields are located on the edge of the South Downs.
Our very own spin, dance and aerobics studio.
We also use the exceptional athletics resources available locally; at Withdean Stadium, Hove Lagoon, The National Open Water Swimming Centre at Sea Lanes, Brighton Blues Rugby pitch, Falmer Sports Complex at the University of Sussex, and Yellowave beach volleyball courts.
We offer a variety of Sports Scholarships to pupils who show great potential.