By Josh Harris.
Nickname: The Black Cats
City: Located in Sunderland, in the north east of England.
Sunderland were founded in 1879. They play in red and white vertical stripes, with black shorts and socks. The red and white stripes have been adopted by Sunderland since the 1887-88 season.
The Black Cats play at the Stadium of Light, a 49,000 seater stadium which has been their home since 1997. Previously to the Stadium of Light, Roker Park was the home of Sunderland for 99 years.
Arch-enemy: Sunderland have a main rivalry with nearby neighbors Newcastle. The fixture between the two sides is called the Tyne-Wear derby. The river Wear runs through Sunderland, while the Tyne river runs through Newcastle.
Famous Players: Notable former Sunderland players are Jimmy Montgomery – most appearances for the club, Len Ashurst, Gary Bennett, Bobby Kerr, Gordon Armstrong, Charlie Hurley, Bobby Gurney, Kevin Ball, Martin Harvey, Charlie Buchan, Dave Halliday, George Holley, Johnny Campbell, Kevin Phillips and Jimmy Millar.
Honors: Sunderland have previously won the First Division six times, the Second Division/Championship five times, the Third Division once and the FA Cup twice.
Fun fact: The nickname ‘Black Cats’ was decided by the supporters in a poll on the Sunderland website. Over half the suggestions were preferred as the ‘Black Cats’.
