Alan James Browne (born 15 April 1995) is an Irish professional footballer who plays as a central midfielder for club Sunderland and the Republic of Ireland national team.
Club career Cork City Browne joined the Cork City U19 squad from Ringmahon Rangers before the 2012 season, graduating to the senior squad the following season. He was named on the substitutes' bench twice in the 2013 season for games against Sligo Rovers and Drogheda United, but he failed to make a first-team appearance for the club before leaving.
Preston North End Browne signed an 18-month contract with Preston North End in League One, joining them on 1 January 2014. He made his first-team debut on 25 March 2014, coming on as a substitute in a 3–1 victory against Peterborough United with the score at 1–1, with a contribution and work ethic that drew praise from manager Simon Grayson.
In 2015, Browne was involved in the play-off final win, which saw Preston promoted to the Championship.
Browne became a major part of the Preston squad throughout the 2017–18 season, scoring eight goals. This led to him earning the clubs Player of the Year award.
From the 2020–21 season Browne was appointed club captain following the departure of Tom Clarke. On 13 January 2021, Browne signed a new three-and-a-half-year deal with the club, seeing him under contract until the end of the 2023–24 season.
On 27 January 2024, Browne made his 400th appearance for Preston North End against Millwall.
On 1 July 2024, Preston North End announced that Browne had departed the club having rejected the offer of a new three-year deal. Following Browne's departure, reports circulated that he had rejected the offer of a new contract due to disagreements with then manager Ryan Lowe, who subsequently resigned one game into the 2024–2025 season.
Sunderland Browne signed for EFL Championship side Sunderland on a three-year deal in July 2024. He scored his first goal for the club in a 3–1 victory against Portsmouth.
Loan to Middlesbrough Following Sunderland's promotion to the Premier League, on 1 September 2025 it was announced that Browne had signed for EFL Championship club Middlesbrough on a season-long loan deal. On 4 January 2026, Browne scored his first goal for the club in a 4–0 win against Southampton at the Riverside Stadium. He scored a further two goals across the month, being named EFL Championship Player of the Month.
International career On 24 March 2021, Browne scored his first competitive goal for Ireland, a header to give them the lead in a 3–2 defeat away to Serbia in the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.
Career statistics Club
+ Appearances and goals by club, season and competitionClubSeasonLeagueNational cupLeague cupEurope OtherTotalDivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals Cork City2013LOI Premier Division000000——00Preston North End2013–14League One8100——1Appearance in League One play-offs0912014–15League One2034020—6Four appearances in Football League Trophy, two appearances in League One play-offs03232015–16Championship3631030——4032016–17Championship3101030——3502017–18Championship4472210——4792018–19Championship38121020——41122019–20Championship4340030——4642020–21Championship3841020——4142021–22Championship3941010——4142022–23Championship3612110——3922023–24Championship4141010——434Total37443143190—7041446Sunderland2024–25Championship2210000—1Appearance(s) in Championship play-offs02312025–26Premier League00—00——002026–27Premier League00001000—10Total22100100010241Middlesbrough (loan)2025–26Championship38410——30424Career total434481532000011048051
International
+ Appearances and goals by national team and yearNational teamYearAppsGoalsRepublic of Ireland2017102018202019612020202021612022103202380202420202500202620Total395
As of match played 31 March 2026. Ireland score listed first, score column indicates score after each Browne goal.
+ International goals by date, venue, cap, opponent, score, result and competitionNo.DateVenueCapOpponentScoreResultCompetition110 September 2019Aviva Stadium, Dublin, Ireland51–03–1Friendly224 March 2021Red Star Stadium, Belgrade, Serbia121–02–32022 FIFA World Cup qualification326 March 2022Aviva Stadium, Dublin, Ireland182–22–2Friendly411 June 2022Aviva Stadium, Dublin, Ireland221–03–02022–23 UEFA Nations League B517 November 2022Aviva Stadium, Dublin, Ireland261–11–2Friendly
Honours Preston North End Football League One play-offs: 2015
Sunderland EFL Championship play-offs: 2025
Individual FAI Young Player of the Year 2019 EFL Championship Player of the Month: January 2026
References
External links