Sunderland

Sunderland A.F.C. were first formed in 1879 by local schoolmaster, James Allen. They were originally called 'Sunderland and District Teachers A.F.C.' and entered the football league the following year to replace Stoke City when they failed to get re-elected, making the Wearside club the league's first new member since it was established in 1888.

Now playing their games in the Premier League at the 49,000-seater Stadium of Light, they have come on in leaps and bounds in terms of professionalism, but those early days were amongst the most successful in the club's history. Having won the league championship in their second full campaign, they went on to defend their title the following year and boasted an array of attacking talent which saw them complete the then seemingly impossible feat of scoring over 100 goals in a season as a team.

In 1900, Sunderland moved to Roker Park - the stadium that would remain their home until 1997, when they moved to their present ground - but the advent of the twentieth century resulted in the drying up of league titles that had become so commonplace at the club in the preceding decade. They won only three more first division championships between 1900 and the conception of the Premier League, and in 1958 they were finally relegated from the top flight after a 68-year stay at English football's top table.

Following relegation from the top tier, three Cup finals - the FA Cup in 1973 and 1992, and the League Cup in 1985 - were all the Black Cats faithful had to sing about in the intervening years, with the club almost falling into the third tier in 1995. However, promotion into the Premier League followed in 1999 under manager Peter Reid, and after a number of inconsistent seasons, the club finally stabilised themselves at this level in 2007. Despite flirting with relegation, they have remained there ever since.

Their official nickname is 'The Black Cats' which is rumoured to come from a number of sources, including a tale of a supporter who took a black cat in his top pocket to the 1937 FA Cup as a good luck charm. Other rumours state that in the 1960s, a black cat lived in Roker Park, and was cared for by the football club.

Traditionally, Sunderland's main rivals are Newcastle United, and the Tyne-Wear derby, contested between the two sides, is always the stand-out game that both groups of supporters look out for whenever the new season's fixture list is announced, ranking as one of England's fiercest local derbies.

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