Madison Haley interview: Panic at the disco – Brighton forward’s mayhem in the AM

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Paul Hazlewood/BHAFC

There is championship-clinching evidence of how formidable a force Madison Haley can be. Making a scoring return to action recently, Brighton & Hove Albion’s American forward also managed to unleash a power play behind the scenes of such cinematic magnitude that her own camp were suddenly on red alert.

A potent part of the most lethal Stanford University side in history, two-time national champion Madison Haley then shot Sydney FC to A-League Women glory. Plenty looks different for the Brighton & Hove Albion player today, but the clinical assurance with which she lifted a Kiko Seike pass into Leicester City’s net last month – on a first start since an early-season setback (groin) – looked like a page from her scoring scrapbook.

The first-half strike set the Seagulls up for a 4-1 home success in their early-afternoon, Sunday encounter at the Amex. If something felt at all unusual for ‘Madi,’ that’s only because she’s used to coming up with the goods well before midday.

“I get into the gym earliest in the mornings, so I’ve lately been DJing for the team before our team meeting,” says the 27-year-old. “It’s early in the mornings, so very relaxed, chill vibes, and we pick up the tempo closer to training.”

But East Sussex’s best-kept secret on the AM airwaves then went rogue, sending chaos coursing through the corridors.

“I was recently playing Céline Dion ‘My Heart Will Go On’ – people came running into the gym and were like, ‘Is everyone all right?’ I was like, ‘It’s just a good song!’

“They didn’t realise I was in there and they were running in to change the music. I was like, ‘Re-lax, I just wanted to listen to Céline belt.’”

Her third Brighton season follows the team’s best Barclays WSL finish to date (5th). Adaptation for the North Dallasite on England’s south coast has also come via a switch from her natural centre-forward position to the wing, though assuming an unfamiliar role is old territory in one sense.

Extracurricular ingenuity called in California, with remarkable results.

“Somehow, I got out of (doing an initiation) at Sydney and here at Brighton, but the song I sang in college was ‘Never Gonna Give You Up’ by Rick Astley. You had to write your own song or rap, so I chose ‘Never Gonna Give You Up,’ but I changed the lyrics so it made it more personal to Stanford.

“I know I probably referenced biking because we’re a big biking campus.”

Was it a meme-inspired choice or just a liking for late-80s English pop stars?

“I think I already knew the song, but yeah, then the ‘Rickrolling’ resurgence and memes definitely put it at the forefront of my mind. I think I just picked it because I thought it’d be easy to sing, number one, because of the register, because it was either a song or a rap, and I was finding trying to come up with a rap song really difficult.”

But Brighton’s July 2023 signing wasn’t entirely for her remix ability. While history points to ample standouts from college soccer without the subsequent success after turning professional, the cut and thrust that had characterised Madi’s best Stanford performances soon translated after joining Sydney FC.

Stepping up for the regular-season premiers (1st place) with an 89th-minute winner in the Preliminary Final (1-0 v Melbourne Victory), she would cap an 11-goal campaign with a Grand Final double. The Sky Blues had lift-off against Western United when she rose above a crowd scene to meet Mackenzie Hawkesby’s early corner with enough hang time to merit a spot on ‘90s/2000s teen TV.

With her back-post presence on an identical move helping to create a second from captain Natalie Tobin, she was predatory on Sydney’s fourth (in a 4-0 rout), punishing defensive indecision to force home a rebound. The silverware-shimmering sign-off to her Australian adventure, it was a display that couldn’t have failed to impress potential suitors.

Three months later came confirmation that Europe was next. Signing for a Brighton team led at the time by Melissa Phillips, the aforementioned midfielder Mackenzie Hawkesby, plus defender Charlize Rule, followed from Sydney soon after.

“I didn’t know much about the area,” Madi explains. “My agent had given me a bit of a rundown because he’d been here before, but I had been following the men’s team beforehand, so I knew some bits, at least some of the players, but I obviously did not know the area at all.”

She arrived boosted by another accomplishment from her Sydney spell, scooping the A-League Women’s Goal of the Year for a solo effort against Brisbane Roar, completed with a chipped finish off the far post. Almost as impressive that season was managing to meet rap superstar Nelly at Accor Stadium following his set at Juicy Fest.

Welcome to Nellyville

A separate headline performer, though, was actually part of her household earlier this year. July saw Madi and some Brighton teammates watching on TV together as England overcame Spain in the UEFA Women’s EURO final, and one of the tournament’s biggest success stories had been up close and unplugged in the preceding months.

“Michelle Agyemang, who everyone knows now, I got to live with her (during her first loan from Arsenal) and she’s extremely talented; guitar player and pianist. Charlie Rule, she can play pretty well on the guitar.

“A lot of the time, (Agyemang) would just play, that was her way to unwind, and so I would come downstairs and she would be playing.”

If it ever comes to a Seagulls live lounge, Madi might yet be a low-key contender herself.

“I played piano for a bit when I was younger, but it was about that time where football was becoming more serious, so you had to kind of choose, so obviously I chose football, and I never looked back. But I wish I would have kept playing and remembered how to read music, that is one of my regrets.”

Growing up with three older siblings (sisters Princess and Brianna, and brother C.J.), the former FC Dallas WPSL player was born in October 1998, around the time of her father Charles Haley’s NFL comeback from retirement to aid an injury-stricken San Francisco 49ers.

That Madi calls Texas home links to the Virginia native’s Dallas Cowboys career, during which the legendary pass rusher won three of his five Super Bowls (the first two coming with the 49ers), a ring haul equalled and surpassed only by Tom Brady (7). Along with a propensity to excel in the post-season, Madi also had a soulful streak passed on from Dad (and mother Karen, of course).

“My whole family, they love music, and I remember my parents listening to the Temptations and artists like that, Kool and the Gang, Earth, Wind & Fire, which I know obviously. So, yeah, definitely some of the old-school music growing up, but I just think it was something that we always loved to do, going to concerts, so it’s sort of been an ever-present part of my life.

“I remember we used to have a Jesse McCartney CD we would wear out in my mom’s car! So, we did buy CDs; since Spotify has come about, definitely been more downloads, but I do have a record player, so I love buying actual records and vinyls.

“That was something that I started to do in college, so I do love going to a record store and buying a few.”

While the turntable hasn’t come along on her world travels, she has been accompanied by the vintage quality of Fran Kirby (even if she’s still only 32…) at Brighton. The Chelsea great was a stellar attacking addition – along with former England teammate Nikita Parris (now of London City Lionesses) – ahead of last season’s landmark finish.

Coming 9th in Madi’s first year, the Seagulls became the latest team to shine from the WSL’s chasing pack, with their aforementioned top-five place under new boss Dario Vidošić. The Aussie-Croatian coach needs no reminding that it is a league trend which means a drop-off in the next season, but Albion believe that the foundations are being laid to make them much more than a fleeting threat.

Not unlike the approach that has seen the men’s set-up draw widespread admiration as a forward-thinking, Premier League mainstay known for unearthing on-field gems, the women have sourced talent from around the globe, too. One of 14 nationalities in the first team, Madi describes the atmosphere so far in 2025/26, with a Spanish-Swedish double act earning special mention.

“I would say just a lot of personality. You’ve got Carla Camacho, she’s super young and just wild; her and Rosa (Kafaji) I always joke that they’re just a scary duo to see together because they have that young energy and they’re just funny.

“We’ve got Fuka (Tsunoda), so now we have a little Japanese trio (with Kiko Seike and Moeka Minami), those three are always together, which has been quite fun. We’ve got Maelys (Mpomé), she’s always throwing fits here, obviously being French, so she’s always keeping us on our toes, in terms of her outfits.”

Music has also been bringing their group flavour to the fore. Despite Madi’s gym takeover, the primetime slot mostly goes to their Scottish full-back, but pre-season also brought the collation of a squad playlist.

“Rachel (McLauchlan) is technically the DJ, but also our kitman (Tim Capstick), he also DJs. We’ve got a few different DJs, to be fair, but we do have that (team) playlist.

“‘Get It Right’ by Tems (featuring Asake), I know for sure I put that on there, because that’s one of my favourite songs. ‘Set My Heart On Fire (I’m Alive x And the Beat Goes On),’ a Céline Dion remix (with Majestic and The Jammin Kid), that one’s great, love that one.

“I love Khalid. Joesef, he’s a Scottish artist, really good.

“Joy Crookes, who I recently saw in Brixton, fantastic… I’m definitely one of those people if I like a song, I’ll wear it out!”

Currently house sharing with Japanese midfield prospect Fuka Tsunoda in the 21-year-old’s first season in England, Madi reveals how further team bonding has been had, with a little help from Sony and…Adam Sandler.

“We’re quite a close-knit group, so we do spend time in the mornings together. You see girls staying afterwards to play PlayStation or get a coffee on site, or just having a long lunch, like I had today!

“We’ve had a few movie nights. Happy Gilmore 2, we watched that at Maisie (Symonds)’s place, that was quite fun – movie was mid! But the vibes were high.”

The team’s opportunity to continue collaborating with England sensation Michelle Agyemang was cruelly stolen away after the 19-year-old’s ACL injury in October. With hopes that this season isn’t the last of the Arsenal loan forward’s Brighton days, Madi would also make her a priority pick if she ever recorded a song cover with any of her career teammates.

“With Mich, maybe like an Adele (song), because hers are all very piano-based songs – I’m not on vocals, though! I’d put Mich on piano.

“Maybe put Maisie on vocals, to be fair, she can actually hold a tune. Her and Bex Rayner.”

The chemistry in her Stanford teams certainly lives long in the memory. Together with current Chelsea forward Catarina Macário – “one of my favourite people in the world,” – Madi was a national champion as both a freshman and junior.

The former was secured with Jaye Boissiere’s winner against UCLA (3-2) in 2017, for a Cardinal side led by the likes of midfielder Andi Sullivan and defender Tierna Davidson. Two years later, Madi contributed 11 goals and 14 assists as Paul Ratcliffe’s team – now also starring forward Sophia Smith (Wilson) and defender Naomi Girma – outscored any other in program history, with 102.

It was a shootout victory over North Carolina that sealed the deal, featuring Kiki Pickett’s winning penalty, plus two crucial saves from the late Katie Meyer. Madi remembers how the sorely-missed goalkeeping star was among the playlist leaders – contributions coming also from the likes of attacker Civana Kuhlmann – for a group with a pounding pulse.

“We loved Megan Thee Stallion, she was very present in our locker room. Migos, music like that; we loved our rap music.

“It was a huge part of our locker room; we would get absolutely fired up before games. It was always funny, our coach would come in to deliver his pre-match speech and we’d all be sweating!

“‘Oh, you guys already warmed up, basically,’ because we’d be dancing 15 minutes before we’d even go out for warm-ups. We would just be having the best time.”

Graduating with a master’s in Sustainability Science and Practice, she had played a fifth and final season in 2021 as a grad student. It meant a break from competitive action of almost a year, while completing her degree and then training individually with her skills coaches back in Dallas, in preparation for joining Sydney.

Although opting to bypass the NWSL, it had seemed she was bound for Chicago Red Stars (now Chicago Stars FC), having been drafted in January 2021. The pandemic had created an anomaly of a year, in which the usual draft-day grandeur made way for an online event, while registration requirements were waived and players could be selected regardless of whether they had even put themselves forward. They could also forfeit their remaining college eligibility and join their new club immediately, or delay the move in favour of completing their college career.

“It was very weird, because when that was happening, everyone on our team, because it was Covid, we were living together in dorms, which was not the case outside of it being the Covid year,” Madi recalls. “Kiki Pickett, she had declared to go into the draft, so we were all prepared to celebrate her getting drafted.”

“We were all set in our rooms ready to watch, and then my coaches told me about an hour before that there was a feeling that I was going to get drafted, so I was like, ‘Ohh-kay…what am I supposed to do with that information?’ They didn’t really know much, they just were like, ‘You’re gonna get drafted,’ so I kind of kept that to myself, ‘Okay, that’s really interesting.’

“Kiki got drafted (by Kansas City), fourth overall, so we’re screaming in the hall, in the dorms, and we’re all running in to celebrate with her. She obviously does her live interview and stuff, she had everything set up, that was great.

“I’m sitting there and I’m watching, and I have class starting in five minutes, so I’m like, ‘If I don’t get drafted in the next five minutes, I’m gonna miss it!’ Because I have to log on to Zoom, and I was about to walk out of the room and they called my name, so I was drafted seventh overall.

“I could hear doors opening and shutting and everyone was sprinting down the hall to find where I was, because no one really knew that was going to happen.”

Abolished in August 2024, the draft had been an impactful component in a league where players’ lack of say in the clubs who acquired them – during their entire NWSL careers – had felt increasingly out of step with the modern game. So, did Madi ever actually see herself heading to Chicago?

“I still think of it as being a very memorable and special time, to have that with my teammates, but it also introduced some other complications, because I was always going to take my fifth year, I wasn’t really preparing to go pro at that time. It just gave me something else to think about.

“Obviously, when my time ended at Stanford, I had that opportunity on the table, but equally, I was very interested in playing overseas. It added some complications but I think it was good problems to have.”

Telling how last season gave her “even more appreciation for all the things that Brighton has to offer,” downtime is naturally more enjoyable on the balmier days, but she takes the smooth with the rather more rugged.

“I love to just go to the beach – even though it’s rocks!”

No matter which side of the Atlantic, she also continues to look for live-music openings.

“I saw Beyoncé on her Cowboy Carter Tour, so that was fantastic; been lucky enough to see her a few times, so she’s always amazing. I got to see Taylor Swift on the Eras Tour, which was one of those iconic tours, so I was really glad I was able to see her.

“The 1975 is one of my favourite bands, so I’ve seen them quite a few times! Lucky enough to see Lizzo.

“For festivals, we have one called Austin City Limits in Texas, ACL; that is one of my favourite festivals I’ve been to.”

Given the privilege of seeing anyone from all-time, meanwhile.

“I think my top two are Whitney Houston and Michael Jackson.”

Whitney’s iconic national-anthem performance at Tampa Stadium in 1991 was a rare Super Bowl in that era to not feature Charles Haley. He was, however, a winner again two years later, as the Cowboys beat the Buffalo Bills at the Rose Bowl, when the half-time show came from…Michael Jackson. A giant leap for bookings since the Elvis impersonator had been the star attraction at Charles’ first in 1989.

The words ‘winning mentality’ have been wheeled out in sport almost as often as, well, Elvis impersonators anywhere. Madi’s heritage in that sense, however, is gold standard.

Hers is a sporting world greatly removed from that of her father, and it doesn’t take extensive knowledge of their respective, personal stories to appreciate that she is far from a carbon copy. Nevertheless, some parallels can perhaps still be drawn, not least in how both ultimately won through in professions where most don’t make it.

“I would say that we’re very different,” says Madi on how much she knowingly absorbed of her dad’s competitive mindset. “I’ve always been very passionate about football (soccer).”

“We’re not the same sport, so I think from his perspective, he always has kind of left me to it. He’s tried to advise and guide me in different ways, but he also knows when to take a step back, and he only knows what he knows.

“From a young age, he always was very adamant about trying to help me find people that are experts in football and could help me, and that’s not him because it’s not his expertise. He’s let me develop, he’s let me find my mentality, my footing, but I’m sure some of it, just genes and being around him, has probably rubbed off.

“He probably sees some of himself in me more when I’m on the field – at least that’s what he says to me – but I think if anyone meets us or speaks to us, I think that they would say we’re probably a bit different.”

Out to help spark a Brighton surge from 7th place after the WSL’s winter break, Christmas back home brings a chance to shut off from thinking about a team’s season-long chase for success – frustratingly, in one case. ‘How ‘bout them Cowboys?’ Don’t ask. (Their play-off hopes ended up on the open fire this past weekend.)

“Usually around Thanksgiving, Christmas, if the Cowboys have a home game, which they typically do, we go to that as a family, which is quite nice, and a free meal, which is probably why they like it! Besides that, honestly, just being with one another.

“A little bit of shopping, but for me, especially over the last couple of years being so far away from my family, really since I left Stanford, I just want to chill at home! I just want to spend time with them, and my dogs, because I don’t have a lot of time at home, but luckily, my family does come out and visit me, so I know they’ll probably be coming out here in the new year, so I don’t have to cram everything in.”

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Published by Christian Brookes