Head coach, appointed 1 Jul 2024
Record in this archive: 43 league matches, 15 won, 13 drawn, 15 lost (1.35 points per game)
Source: Wikidata (CC0), head coach statement, read 15 Oct 2026. The record counts league matches the archive holds since that date.
Sunderland were founded in 1879, with Sunderland their recorded home. Their earlier honours include First Division championships and FA Cup wins. The later cup victory in that record came in 1972/73. Detailed league results here begin at 1992/93, ahead of the club's first Premier League campaign.
A First Division title preceded Sunderland's opening Premier League season. The campaign ended in relegation, with Roker Park still the recorded home. The ground history then changes to the Stadium of Light.
Another divisional title later preceded a more successful Premier League return. Sunderland finished 7th, with an unbeaten autumn sequence lasting 10 league matches. Their widest league victory here belongs to that campaign, a 5–0 result away to Derby County. The points total was also their highest in the archive.
The best season's points return was 58, with the goal difference above an even balance. That points total remained higher than the returns in the later seasons of the same Premier League spell. The next season repeated the league placing, with slightly fewer points but a larger positive goal difference. A fall to 17th followed before relegation ended the spell. The final campaign included a winless sequence extending from December to May and covering 20 matches.
A Championship win preceded the next return, which also ended at the bottom of the league. The later Championship title came before another, longer Premier League spell. Its opening campaigns finished in the lower half.
Steve Bruce's recorded tenure included the campaign ending in 10th place, before later finishes moved closer to the relegation positions. Further lower-half seasons preceded another bottom-place finish and relegation.
Régis Le Bris' appointment came during the later absence, before the next Premier League return. The completed return campaign matched Sunderland's earlier highest placing, though with fewer points than those older upper-table seasons. Their latest completed season was 2025/26, ending in 7th place.
Coverage Premier League matches only, in the seasons the archive publishes; cups and European matches are not included. Team sheets (line-ups, minutes, cards) are held for 2025/26 only. Aggregate match totals include the in-progress season to the latest published result; finishes and titles count completed seasons only. History and all-time records refer to this archive's coverage, not the club's entire existence. Manager and ground histories may have gaps; no missing spells are inferred.
Sources Football Research Archive data, Wikidata (CC0), Facts from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 (Sunderland A.F.C.)Figures up to 16 Oct 2026Approved 17 Oct 2026
Source OpenFootballUpdated Founded 1879Ground Stadium of LightSeasons held 18
Source: Wikidata (CC0), Q18739, revision 2553264522, checked 15 Oct 2026. The ground comes from the ground history below.
| Ground | When | Seasons here | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|
| Roker Park | until 1996/97 | 1996/97 | Wikipedia, “Sunderland A.F.C.”, revision 1380319226 |
| Stadium of Light | from 1997/98 | 1999/00 to 2026/27 (17) | Wikidata Q18739, revision 2553264522Wikipedia, “Sunderland A.F.C.”, revision 1380319226 |
Dates come from Wikidata's home venue statements where they carry start and end dates, and otherwise from the club's English Wikipedia article. A move between seasons is dated by season. Matches count at a ground by these dates; the archive holds the venue of each match only for 2025/26.
League results for the 18 seasons below. It is not a complete club history: cups and European matches are not included.
| Season | Competition | Position | Ground | P | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026/27 | Premier League | Currently 14th (provisional) | Stadium of Light | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 10 | −4 | 4 | |
| 2025/26 | Premier League | 7th of 20 | Stadium of Light | 38 | 14 | 12 | 12 | 42 | 48 | −6 | 54 | Promoted |
| 2016/17 | Premier League | 20th of 20 | Stadium of Light | 38 | 6 | 6 | 26 | 29 | 69 | −40 | 24 | Relegated |
| 2015/16 | Premier League | 17th of 20 | Stadium of Light | 38 | 9 | 12 | 17 | 48 | 62 | −14 | 39 | |
| 2014/15 | Premier League | 16th of 20 | Stadium of Light | 38 | 7 | 17 | 14 | 31 | 53 | −22 | 38 | |
| 2013/14 | Premier League | 14th of 20 | Stadium of Light | 38 | 10 | 8 | 20 | 41 | 60 | −19 | 38 | |
| 2012/13 | Premier League | 17th of 20 | Stadium of Light | 38 | 9 | 12 | 17 | 41 | 54 | −13 | 39 | |
| 2011/12 | Premier League | 13th of 20 | Stadium of Light | 38 | 11 | 12 | 15 | 45 | 46 | −1 | 45 | |
| 2010/11 | Premier League | 10th of 20 | Stadium of Light | 38 | 12 | 11 | 15 | 45 | 56 | −11 | 47 | |
| 2009/10 | Premier League | 13th of 20 | Stadium of Light | 38 | 11 | 11 | 16 | 48 | 56 | −8 | 44 | |
| 2008/09 | Premier League | 16th of 20 | Stadium of Light | 38 | 9 | 9 | 20 | 34 | 54 | −20 | 36 | |
| 2007/08 | Premier League | 15th of 20 | Stadium of Light | 38 | 11 | 6 | 21 | 36 | 59 | −23 | 39 | Promoted |
| 2005/06 | Premier League | 20th of 20 | Stadium of Light | 38 | 3 | 6 | 29 | 26 | 69 | −43 | 15 | PromotedRelegated |
| 2002/03 | Premier League | 20th of 20 | Stadium of Light | 38 | 4 | 7 | 27 | 21 | 65 | −44 | 19 | Relegated |
| 2001/02 | Premier League | 17th of 20 | Stadium of Light | 38 | 10 | 10 | 18 | 29 | 51 | −22 | 40 | |
| 2000/01 | Premier League | 7th of 20 | Stadium of Light | 38 | 15 | 12 | 11 | 46 | 41 | +5 | 57 | |
| 1999/00 | Premier League | 7th of 20 | Stadium of Light | 38 | 16 | 10 | 12 | 57 | 56 | +1 | 58 | Promoted |
| 1996/97 | Premier League | 18th of 20 | Roker Park | 38 | 10 | 10 | 18 | 35 | 53 | −18 | 40 | PromotedRelegated |
Positions and points are calculated by the archive from the results, after any sourced points adjustment (*). Promoted and relegated are inferred only by comparing adjacent seasons the archive publishes.
Sunderland finished as high as 7th and as low as 20th in 17 completed Premier League seasons held, and went down after 1996/97, 2002/03, 2005/06 and 2016/17.
| Season | Position | Clubs | Points | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026/27 | 14th | 20 | 4 | Provisional |
| 2025/26 | 7th | 20 | 54 | Not held |
| 2024/25 | Not held | 20 | Not held | Not in Premier League |
| 2023/24 | Not held | 20 | Not held | Not in Premier League |
| 2022/23 | Not held | 20 | Not held | Not in Premier League |
| 2021/22 |
Data cutoff 22 Oct 2026, 15:00 BSTMetrics league position, points
| Not held |
| 20 |
| Not held |
| Not in Premier League |
| 2020/21 | Not held | 20 | Not held | Not in Premier League |
|---|
| 2019/20 | Not held | 20 | Not held | Not in Premier League |
|---|
| 2018/19 | Not held | 20 | Not held | Not in Premier League |
|---|
| 2017/18 | Not held | 20 | Not held | Not in Premier League |
|---|
| 2016/17 | 20th | 20 | 24 | Relegated |
|---|
| 2015/16 | 17th | 20 | 39 | Not held |
|---|
| 2014/15 | 16th | 20 | 38 | Not held |
|---|
| 2013/14 | 14th | 20 | 38 | Not held |
|---|
| 2012/13 | 17th | 20 | 39 | Not held |
|---|
| 2011/12 | 13th | 20 | 45 | Not held |
|---|
| 2010/11 | 10th | 20 | 47 | Not held |
|---|
| 2009/10 | 13th | 20 | 44 | Not held |
|---|
| 2008/09 | 16th | 20 | 36 | Not held |
|---|
| 2007/08 | 15th | 20 | 39 | Not held |
|---|
| 2006/07 | Not held | 20 | Not held | Not in Premier League |
|---|
| 2005/06 | 20th | 20 | 15 | Relegated |
|---|
| 2004/05 | Not held | 20 | Not held | Not in Premier League |
|---|
| 2003/04 | Not held | 20 | Not held | Not in Premier League |
|---|
| 2002/03 | 20th | 20 | 19 | Relegated |
|---|
| 2001/02 | 17th | 20 | 40 | Not held |
|---|
| 2000/01 | 7th | 20 | 57 | Not held |
|---|
| 1999/00 | 7th | 20 | 58 | Not held |
|---|
| 1998/99 | Not held | 20 | Not held | Not in Premier League |
|---|
| 1997/98 | Not held | 20 | Not held | Not in Premier League |
|---|
| 1996/97 | 18th | 20 | 40 | Relegated |
|---|