Sunderland

Early years and the "Team of All Talents" (1879–1908)

The club was founded as Sunderland and District Teachers A.F.C. by schoolmaster James Allan in what has commonly been believed to be October 1879. However, evidence suggests that the club was not formally created until a year later, on 25 September 1880. It was renamed as Sunderland A.F.C. and became open to more than just school teachers in October 1880.

Sunderland joined The Football League for the 1890–91 season. Tom Watson became Sunderland's first manager when he was appointed in 1888. During the late 19th century, they were declared the "Team of All Talents" by William McGregor, the founder of the league, after a 7–2 win against Aston Villa. Sunderland won the league championship in the 1891–92 season, one season after joining The Football League, and this performance led The Times to describe the players as "a wonderfully fine team". Sunderland successfully defended the title the following season, aided by their Scottish centre forward John Campbell, who broke the 30-goal mark for the second time in consecutive seasons. In the process, they became the first team to score 100 goals in a season, a feat not matched until 1919–20.

Sunderland came close to winning a third successive league championship in the 1893–94 season, finishing second behind Aston Villa. However, they regained the title in the 1894–95 season, with Campbell becoming league top scorer for the third time. Sunderland then beat Scottish champions Heart of Midlothian in a game described as the "World Championship" match. Their goalkeeper Ned Doig set a 19th-century world record by not conceding any goals in 87 of his 290 top division appearances (30%). From 1886 until 1898, Sunderland's home ground was in Newcastle Road. In 1898, the club moved to what would become their home for almost a century, Roker Park. Initially the ground had a capacity of 30,000.

After taking Sunderland to three English League championship titles manager Watson resigned at the end of the 1895–96 season, in order to join Liverpool. Robert Campbell replaced him. Campbell did not achieve the same playing success as Watson, as Sunderland failed to win any titles in his three seasons at the club.

Scotsman Alex Mackie replaced Campbell as manager for the 1899 season. Following a second-place finish in 1900–01, the club won their fourth league title in the 1901–02 season, and followed this up with victory in the Sheriff of London Charity Shield.

In December 1902, Arthur Bridgett joined Sunderland. He went on to captain the "Black Cats" for ten years and gain eleven England caps, making him the club's second most-capped England international behind Dave Watson.

Further league championship titles (1908–1945)

On 5 December 1908, Sunderland achieved their highest ever league win, 9–1 against north-east rivals Newcastle United. Under Irish manager Bob Kyle and with Scottish Charles Thomson as captain, the club won the league again in 1913, but lost their first FA Cup final 1–0 to Aston Villa.

Two seasons later the First World War brought the league to a halt. After the league's resumption, Sunderland came close to winning another championship in the 1922–23 season, when they were runners-up to Liverpool. They also came close the following season, finishing third. The club escaped relegation from the First Division by one point in the 1927–28 season despite 35 goals from Dave Halliday. Halliday improved his goal scoring to 43 goals in 42 games the following season, an all-time Sunderland record for goals scored in a single season.

The club's sixth league championship came in the 1935–36 season under Scottish manager Johnny Cochrane. They scored 109 goals during the season, with Raich Carter and Bobby Gurney each scoring 31. They followed this by winning the Charity Shield against FA Cup winners Arsenal.

Despite winning the league, the season did not go without tragedy. The young goalkeeper of the team, Jimmy Thorpe, died as a result of being kicked after he had picked up the ball following a backpass against Chelsea. He continued to take part until the match finished, but collapsed at home and died in hospital four days later. This incident led to a change in the rules, whereby players were no longer allowed to raise their foot to a goalkeeper when he had control of the ball in his arms.

They won the FA Cup the following season, after a 3–1 victory against Preston North End at Wembley Stadium. Some football was still played during the Second World War as a morale boosting exercise, in the form of the Football League War Cup. Sunderland were finalists in the tournament in 1942.

"The Bank of England" club, financial troubles and three cup finals (1945–1995)

For Sunderland, the immediate post-war years were characterised by significant spending; the club paid £18,000 (£677,000 today) for Carlisle United's Ivor Broadis in January 1949. Broadis was also Carlisle's manager at the time, and this is the first instance of a player transferring himself to another club. This, along with record-breaking transfer fees to secure the services of Len Shackleton and the Welsh international Trevor Ford, led to a contemporary nickname, the "Bank of England club". The club finished third in the First Division in 1950, their highest finish since the 1936 championship.

The late 1950s saw a sharp downturn in Sunderland's fortunes, and the club was once again implicated in a major financial scandal in 1957. Found guilty of making payments to players in excess of the maximum wage, they were fined £5,000 (£128,000 today), and their chairman and three directors were suspended. The following year, Sunderland were relegated from the highest division for the first time in their 68-year league history. Sunderland's absence from the top flight lasted six years. After a close call in the previous season, the club was promoted to Division One in 1964 after finishing in second place. At the end of the decade, they were again relegated to the Second Division after finishing 21st.

Sunderland won their last major trophy in 1973, in a 1–0 victory over Don Revie's Leeds United in the FA Cup Final. A Second Division club at the time, Sunderland won the game thanks mostly to the efforts of their goalkeeper Jimmy Montgomery. Ian Porterfield scored a volley in the 30th minute to beat Leeds and take the trophy. Since 1973 only two other clubs, Southampton in 1976, and West Ham United in 1980, have equalled Sunderland's achievement of lifting the FA Cup while playing outside the top tier of English football.

By winning the FA Cup, Sunderland qualified for the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup, the club's only appearance in European competition to date. They beat Vasas Budapest but then lost on aggregate to Sporting of Portugal in the second round. After spending six seasons in the Second Division, Sunderland were promoted to Division One in the 1975–76 season, but were relegated again the following season, despite a late-season comeback which saw them win two matches 6–0 and 6–1.

Sunderland appeared in their first League Cup final in 1985, but lost 1–0 to Norwich City. In 1987, Sunderland saw one of the lowest points in their history, when they were relegated to the Third Division of the English league for the first time. Under new chairman Bob Murray and new manager Denis Smith, the club was promoted the following season. In 1990, they were promoted back to the top flight in unusual circumstances, losing to Swindon Town in the play-off final, but Swindon's promotion was revoked after the club was found guilty of financial irregularities and Sunderland were promoted instead. They stayed up for one year before being relegated on the final day of the following season.

Sunderland's next outing in a major final came in 1992 when, as a Second Division club, they returned to the FA Cup final. There was to be no repeat of the heroics of 1973, as Sunderland lost 2–0 to Liverpool.

New stadium, promotions and relegations (1995–2006)

In 1995, they faced the prospect of a return to the third-tier of English football. Peter Reid was brought in as manager, and quickly turned things around. Reid's time in charge had a stabilising effect; he remained manager for seven years. After promotion from Division One in the 1995–96 season, Sunderland began their first season in the Premier League, but finished third from the bottom and were relegated back to the First Division.

In 1997, Sunderland left Roker Park and moved to the Stadium of Light, a 42,000-seat arena that, at the time, was the largest stadium built in England after the Second World War. The capacity was later increased to 49,000.

Sunderland returned to the Premier League as First Division champions in 1999 with a then-record 105 points. At the end of the season Sunderland finished seventh, with Kevin Phillips winning the European Golden Shoe in his first top-flight season, scoring 30 goals.

Another seventh-place finish in the 2000–01 season was followed by two less successful seasons, and they were relegated to the second-tier with a then-record low 19 points in 2003. Former Ireland manager Mick McCarthy took over at the club, and, in 2005, he took Sunderland up as champions for the third time in less than 10 years. However, the club's stay in the top flight was short-lived as Sunderland were once again relegated, this time with a new record-low total of 15 points. McCarthy left the club in mid-season, and he was replaced temporarily by former Sunderland player Kevin Ball.

Drumaville Consortium takeover and Ellis Short era (2006–2016)

Following Sunderland's relegation from the Premier League, the club was taken over by the Irish Drumaville Consortium, headed by ex-player Niall Quinn, who appointed former Manchester United captain Roy Keane as the new manager. Under Keane, the club rose steadily up the table with an unbeaten run of 17 games to win promotion to the Premier League, Following an inconsistent start to the 2008–09 season, Keane resigned. Before the start of the following campaign, Irish-American businessman Ellis Short completed a full takeover of the club, and Steve Bruce was announced as the next manager on 3 June.

One of Bruce's first signings, Darren Bent, cost a club record fee of £10 million, broken a year later when they bought Ghana international Asamoah Gyan for around £13 million. Sunderland started the 2010–11 season strongly, but after Bent left for Aston Villa in January 2011 in a deal potentially worth £24 million, a record transfer fee received for the club, they eventually finished 10th—which was still their highest top-flight finish for 10 years. After being named Sunderland's Young Player of the Year for two seasons in a row, local player Jordan Henderson was transferred to Liverpool at the end of the 2010–11 season, where he went on to win the Champions League among other achievements.

Short replaced Quinn as chairman in October 2011, with Quinn initially becoming Director of International Development; he left the club with immediate effect in February 2012. Bruce was sacked in November 2011, and replaced by Martin O'Neill. O'Neill was sacked in March 2013 and Italian Paolo Di Canio was announced as his replacement the following day to widespread controversy. Sunderland went on to avoid relegation with one game to go. Di Canio was sacked after a poor start to the 2013–14 season, and reports of a complete breakdown in relations with his players. Gus Poyet was announced as his replacement, and led Sunderland to the 2014 Football League Cup Final, where they were defeated 3–1 by Manchester City. In March 2015 Poyet was sacked, and veteran Dutchman Dick Advocaat was appointed, saving the club from relegation. Eight games into the 2015–16 season he resigned from the position. Sam Allardyce was appointed the next manager in October 2015, and the club was again saved from relegation at the end of the season.

Divisional movements and ownership changes (2016–present)

In July 2016, Allardyce left the club to be announced as manager for the England national team, and David Moyes was appointed as his replacement. Under Moyes, Sunderland made the worst ever start to a Premier League season, taking just two points from their opening 10 matches. The club was relegated for the first time in 10 years at the end of 2016–17, finishing bottom of the table, and Moyes resigned. In June 2017, goalkeeper Jordan Pickford, a product of Sunderland's academy, was transferred to Everton for a fee of £25 million, rising to a possible £30 million—a record for a British goalkeeper.

Following relegation, Simon Grayson was announced as the new manager. The club made a very poor start to the 2017–18 EFL Championship season (which was documented in the Netflix series Sunderland 'Til I Die) and Grayson was sacked at the end of October, with Chris Coleman replacing him. In April 2018, after a second consecutive relegation, this time to League One, the club was sold to a group led by Stewart Donald and Coleman was released from his contract.

Jack Ross was appointed as the new manager in May 2018. In the club's first season in League One they got to the final of the EFL Trophy and finished 5th and reached the play-off final, but lost to Charlton Athletic at Wembley. After a disappointing start to the following 2019–20 season, Ross was sacked. He was replaced by former Bolton Wanderers manager Phil Parkinson. Sunderland finished the season in 8th place, their lowest ever league position, with the final standings ultimately being determined by points per game due to football's suspension due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Parkinson was sacked in November 2020 and was replaced by Lee Johnson the following month. Later that month, the club reached an agreement with Kyril Louis-Dreyfus for him to purchase a controlling stake in the club. The takeover was completed on 18 February 2021. In May 2021, the club again fell short of promotion after losing to Lincoln City 3–2 on aggregate in the semifinals of the play-offs.

In February 2022, former Norwich manager Alex Neil was appointed as head coach, following Johnson's dismissal after a 6–0 loss to Bolton in January. After finishing fifth in League One at the end of the season, Sunderland qualified for the playoffs. In the semi-finals, they beat Sheffield Wednesday 2–1 on aggregate, and went on to beat Wycombe Wanderers 2–0 in the final to secure a return to the second flight of English football for the first time in four years. Tony Mowbray took over as head coach in August that year following Neil's departure to manage Stoke City. Sunderland ended the season in 6th, and were knocked out of the playoff semi-final by Luton Town. On 4 December 2023, Mowbray and his assistant Mark Venus were sacked. On 18 December 2023, Michael Beale was appointed as head coach on a contract until 2026, but was sacked on 19 February 2024 after just 12 games, the shortest managerial stint in Sunderland's history.