Sunderland Football Club was Established in 1879 and the Football Club Nickname is The Black Cats.
The Football Club Manager is: Tony Mowbray
Sunderland AFC is one of the most popular English association football clubs based in Sunderland, UK. The club was originally established in 1879 by a group of school teachers including James Allan and his colleagues. The club joined the Football League in 1890-91 season and played in the top flight of English football for over 67 years before they were relegated into the Second Division for the first time in 1957-58 season. Sunderland AFC is the sixth most successful football club in the UK, having won six English League titles in 1892, 1893, 1895, 1902, 1913, and, most recently, in 1936. The club also finished second on the league table five times in 1894, 1898, 1901, 1923 and 1935.
A Brief History of Sunderland AFC Football Club
In 1877, James Allan traveled from Scotland to Sunderland to work as a teacher at the Hendon Board School. Having passion for football, Allan decided to build a new football team in Sunderland. He gathered a group of teachers in town who shared his enthusiasm for football, and built a team. At a gathering held on Norfolk Street in October 1879, the foundation of the Football club was officially announced. In the beginning, the club was named ‘the Sunderland and District Teachers’ Association Football Club.
Initially, the club started playing at Blue House Field that was located near Allan’s School. Robert Singleton, the headmaster of Gray School, was named captain of the team. The entire squad was made up of local teachers. The club was required to pay £10 a year in ground rent as well as the costs associated with traveling to away games. Durham County had only three clubs, therefore the team had to travel far to play away games. The club found it impossible to cover these high costs, so in an effort to raise funds, they called a meeting in October 1880 and decided to open the club to general members. Later, the team’s name was also changed to Sunderland AFC. Check out the latest Sunderland latest football news in the 24 7 Football dedicated section.
Early Success of Sunderland FC
Sunderland AFC had changed their home ground four times before settling at Newcastle Road in 1886. The club also decided to become a professional football club in 1885, and recruited many talented players from Scotland. In 1888, the club hired their first manager Tom Watson. Initially, the club participated in FA Cup, local competitions and club friendlies. Sunderland continued to perform well in friendly matches despite not being able to secure a spot in the Football League’s inaugural season. Club won club friendly matches against league opponents Everton, Bolton Wanderers, and Blackburn Rovers in 1889.
Sunderland won the Durham Association Challenge Cup for the fourth time in the 1888–89 season. They become one of the most prestigious clubs in the United Kingdom thanks to their ongoing success. The following year, Sunderland reapplied for membership in the Football League and agreed to pay for half of the opponent clubs’ travel expenses to compensate for the additional distance these clubs would have to travel. Their application was accepted in the league’s annual meeting and they earned a spot in the Football League 1890-91 season. Learn some other club information today with the F24-7 Everton FC facts and Liverpool FC facts guides.
First League Title
In their inaugural league campaign, the Black Cats played really well and placed seventh on the league table. The league’s founder, William McGregor, was extremely impressed by Sunderland squad, he dubbed them the “Team of All Talents.” In 1891–92, only one year after joining the league, Sunderland not only made it to the FA Cup semifinals, but also won the first league championship. The club successfully defended the title in the 1892-93 season and became the League champion for the second time. Sunderland became the first team to score 100 goals in a single season. Learn about this seasons Championship top goal scorers, in our goals news section.
Sunderland came very close to winning a third straight league championship during the 1893–94 campaign, but ultimately fell short to Aston Villa in the standings. However, they won it back in the 1894–95 season, with their center forward John Campbell becoming the top scorer of the league for the third time. Ned Doig, the goalkeeper for Sunderland, also contributed to the team’s success by setting a record by not giving up a goal in 87 of his 290 appearances.
More League titles and club tragedy for Sunderland AFC
In the 1901–02 season, the Black Cats won their fourth League title. In the same season, they also won the Sheriff of London Charity Shield for the first time. Sunderland won their fifth League championship in 1912–13. The club also made its first FA Cup final appearance, but fell to Aston Villa by a score of 1-0. Sunderland came close to winning their sixth league championship in the 1922–23 season, but they finished second to Liverpool.
In the 1935–36 campaign, Scottish manager Johnny Cochrane led the team to its sixth league title. The Black Cats also defeated the FA Cup champion Arsenal to win the Charity Shield in the same season. Even though the team won the title, they had to deal with a tragedy when Jimmy Thorpe, goalkeeper, was kicked while picking up the ball against Chelsea FC and later died from his injury. Rules were changed due to this incident; players were no longer permitted to raise their foot toward a goalkeeper who had possession of the ball in his hands.
First FA Cup Title for Sunderland FC
After winning the Football League title six times and FA Charity Shield in 1936, the only English football title the team lacked was the FA Cup. Although Sunderland reached the FA Cup final in 1912-13, they lost the final to Aston Villa. The club was confident about winning the FA Cup after winning the league in 1935–1936. The squad struggled in the following Football League season, finishing 8th in the standings, but they did manage to advance to the FA Cup final in 1936. Do you know who the Aston Villa founders are? or what the WBA latest news is? Find out with our expert football editorial write ups.
In the FA Cup’s third round, Sunderland defeated Southampton by a score of 3-2. The Black Cats defeated Luton Town in a rematch in the fourth round, 3-1. In the fifth round, they easily defeated Swansea by a score of 3-0. The Black Cats beat Wolverhampton Wanderers in the sixth round to advance to the FA Cup Semi Final, where they beat Millwall by a score of 2-1. Sunderland defeated favorite Preston North End in the FA Cup final, 3-1, to claim the trophy. You can follow us on the Official Football 24-7 Pinterest page in Canada too!
The Bank of England Club Title
In English association football, a football club with significant financial support is known by the moniker “The Bank of England club.” In the late 1940s, Sunderland was also referred to as the “Bank of England club” due to its spending on players. In 1949, Sunderland paid £18,000 for Carlisle United’s center forward Ivor Broadis. It was a huge transfer fee for a club to spend on a player. Broadis was serving in a player-manager role at Carlisle United when Sunderland hired him, and it was the first time in history when a player transferred himself to another club.
In 1948, Sunderland paid a record-breaking transfer fee for Newcastle United’s center forward Len Shackleton, due to which Sunderland was named the “Bank of England club”. The Black Cats also signed Aston Villa’s striker Trevor Ford for £30,000 in 1950. Ford only spent three seasons with Sunderland and was sold to Cardiff City in 1953. Check out the Brighton FC latest transfer news
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Financial Crisis and First Relegation
Sunderland AFC experienced a significant financial crisis in the late 1950s when the club’s chairman and board were found responsible for overpaying players. Sunderland received a £5,000 penalty, the largest fine ever imposed on a football club in that time. Due to this financial malpractice, the club’s chairman, three directors were suspended and the club manager Bill Murray was also fined. One month later Murray resigned from the managerial position of Sunderland AFC.
The worst period for Sunderland began in the late 1950s, when the team saw a rapid decline. Following their second-to-last-place finish in the league standings in 1957-58 season, the Black Cats were relegated from the Football League. It was the first relegation of Sunderland in their 68-year Football League career. In 1962-63, the club missed promotion to the Football League Division One on goal average. Chelsea and Sunderland both had 52 points but Chelsea had better goal average. We recommend reviewing the West Ham latest transfer news updates for alternative football news.
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After narrowly missing promotion the season before, Sunderland ultimately earned it in the 1963–64 season after placing second in the league standings. The club was relegated for the second time in 1969–1970, ending its brief stint in the top division. Sunderland won the FA Cup in 1973 while competing in the Second Division. In the FA Cup final, the Black Cats defeated Leeds United by a score of 1-0. Sunderland goalkeeper Jimmy Montgomery played an important role in their FA Cup victory.
Drumaville Consortium Era
Sunderland earned promotion to the Premier League in 1995–96 after winning the Football League Championship. Sunderland returned to the top tier for the first time since the creation of the Premier League. However, the Black Cats were only able to last one season in the Premier League before being dropped back to Division One. In 2004-05, Sunderland won the Football League Championship for the 8th time and got promotion to the Premier League, but again got relegated in the following season.
After being relegated, the club was bought by the Drumaville Consortium, an organization made up of seven Irish and one English businessman and headed by former player Niall Quinn, who immediately made changes in the management and brought former Manchester United captain Roy Keane as club manager. Keane contributed to the team’s steady ascent up the standings with a 17-game unbeaten streak and guided them to their 9th Football League Championship title. Our team have just upated the Live SPL scores for this seasons games.
Back-to-back Relegations and New Ownership
Keane resigned from his position after the 2008-09 season got off to a shaky start. Ellis Short, an Irish-American billionaire, completed a full takeover of the team prior to the start of the following season. Short made multiple changes in the management to bring Sunderland back on track, but no manager could improve Sunderland’s position on the league table. Instead of improvement, Sunderland faced back-to-back relegations in 2017 and 2018. In 2017, Sunderland was relegated to the English Football League Championship and in the following season, they were relegated to the Division One.
In late 2020, Ellis Short decided to sell his shares in the club. A French businessman Kyril Louis-Dreyfus purchased the majority stakes in the club and completed the takeover in February 2021. After spending four consecutive seasons in Division One, Sunderland finally got promotion to the Football League Championship in 2022.
Sunderland AFC Rivalry
Sunderland has two main rival clubs including Newcastle United and Middlesbrough. The match between Sunderland and Newcastle United is known as Tyne–Wear derby or North-East derby and the match between Sunderland and Middlesbrough is called Tees–Wear derby. Both derbies are thrilling to watch, and thousands of spectators come to watch matches in the stadium.
The Tyne-Wear Derby has to be at the top of this list, and for good reason. Since 1883, these two teams have been competing against one another, and each time they hit the field, you can feel the history of the rivalry and the significance it holds for each group of supporters. Every time these clubs clash, the atmosphere is fierce, and there have even been cases of violence, but overall, this rivalry is one of the most entertaining to watch in all of football. Why not read about the latest West Bromwich Albion 24 7 football news or the latest Aston Villa news.
Interesting Facts about Sunderland AFC
- Sunderland was not a founding member of the Football League, but it became the first club to join the Football League after the 12 founding members when they replaced Stoke City in 1890–91.
- When Sunderland won the Football League in the 1894-95 season, the club played a memorable match against Scottish champion Heart of Midlothian. The match was named as the ‘Championship of the World’ match. The Black Cats won 5-3, and were named as champions of the world.
- Ivor Broadis sold himself to Sunderland AFC in 1949 while playing for Carlisle United in a player-manager capacity for a then-record transfer fee of £18,000. He made history by becoming the first manager in English football who transferred himself to another club.
- Initially Sunderland used to wear a full blue kit when it was established in 1879. In the 1888-89 season, the club adopted their most recent red and white stripes color. Sunderland’s most recent badge was redesigned in 1997, when the club moved to the Stadium of Light.
- Sunderland began hosting home games at Roker Park in 1898, and the team played there for more than 99 years. In 1997, the Black Cats relocated to Stadium of Light, their current home field.
- Sunderland decided to change their nickname in 1997 when they relocated to the Stadium of Light, but their fans didn’t like the idea and organized a referendum to preserve the Black Cats as their moniker. The club didn’t change its moniker because of the objections from their supporters.
- In 1999, when the Black Cats picked up 105 points on their road to promotion, they broke the previous record for the most points scored in a Championship season. Reading followed seven years later, surpassing this.
- In 1973, Sunderland AFC was named the Sports Personality Team of the Year, when they won the FA Cup 1973. It was their second FA Cup title, the Black Cats defeated some of the best sides of that time including Leeds United, Manchester City, and Arsenal.
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Sunderland AFC Honours List
Sunderland AFC is one of the oldest clubs in English football history, and has a rich history filled with notable victories, and awards. With millions of supporters all around the world, it is one of the most well-known English football clubs. The club has captured 12 significant trophies, including six Premier League championships, two FA Cups, and two Football League Cups. The full list of significant awards and titles won by Sunderland AFC can be found below. Check out the Premiership winner odds for this season.
6 Football League/ Premier League titles – Sunderland had some early success in the top flight competition of English football. The last League title Sunderland won was in 1935-36. The Black Cats have won overall 6 Leagues titles including, 1891–92, 1892–93, 1894–95, 1901–02, 1912–13, 1935–36.
2 FA Cups – the Black Cats have qualified for the FA Cup finals 4 times, but could win 2 FA Cup titles. The club won the FA Cup in 1936–37, 1972–73.
1 FA Charity Shield – Sunderland has appeared in the FA Charity Shield match twice but could win only one title in 1936.
1 EFL Trophy – the most recent trophy won by the Black Cats was the EFL Trophy in 2020-21. It is a knockout competition organized by English Football League in which teams from EFL League One and League Two compete
BBC Sports Personality Team of the Year Award – Another notable award won by Sunderland is the BBC Sports Personality Team of the Year in 1973, when the club won the FA Cup title.
Football World Championship – it was an exhibition football match used to be played between the English League champion and Scottish champion in the late 19th century. The competition was discontinued in 1904. Sunderland won the Football World Championship three times including 1892, 1893, 1895.
The Contact Details for Sunderland AFC Football Club are as follows:
Sunderland Football Club
Stadium of Light
Sunderland
SR5 1SU
For Corporate Hospitality Please phone – 0871 911 1200
The Official Website for Sunderland Supporters is: https://www.safc.com
The Sunderland Official Twitter Account can be found at: https://twitter.com/SunderlandAFC
The Official Facebook Account for Sunderland is: http://www.facebook.com/sunderlandafc
The Official Instagram Account for Sunderland AFC is: https://www.instagram.com/sunderlandafcofficial/
