Sunderland have travelled a long and extraordinary road, and the 2026 World Cup will witness an astonishing level of representation from the Black Cats.
Back in the 2017/18 season, when Manchester City dominated the Premier League with a record 100 points, Sunderland were adjusting to life in the Championship.
The year before, when Chelsea secured their own 93-point title triumph, the Black Cats languished at the bottom of the Premier League table with just 24 points to their name.
By the 2025/26 season, their journey back to the top was complete. After qualifying for European competition during their first campaign back in the top flight in nine years, Sunderland now boast more players on the world stage than several major European clubs.
During Sunderland’s absence from England’s elite division, the Premier League evolved into the most competitive and technically advanced domestic league in the world.
From Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City to Jurgen Klopp’s relentless Liverpool side, often dubbed the ‘Mentality Monsters’, and Thomas Tuchel’s Champions League-winning Chelsea, the Premier League has, without question, displayed the highest standard of football for nearly a decade.
Before their relegation in the 2016/17 campaign, Sunderland had previously slipped from the top flight in 2005/06. On that occasion, they bounced back immediately and remained a Premier League club from 2007 to 2016 without interruption.
However, the nine-year hiatus that followed made many Sunderland supporters fear that their club might never again secure a stable top-flight presence.
Yet, in a story that blends both the bizarre and the beautiful, the Black Cats managed to qualify for the UEFA Champions League in 2025/26, finishing seventh with 54 points.
Now, as the 2026 World Cup unfolds, Sunderland’s influence on the global stage surpasses that of both Liverpool and Real Madrid.
During Sunderland’s Premier League absence, Liverpool claimed two league titles, ending a 30-year wait by winning the 2019/20 season and adding another in 2024/25, just before Sunderland’s return. The Reds also lifted the UEFA Champions League in 2018/19.
Across the same period, Jurgen Klopp’s men collected three domestic cup trophies, the UEFA Super Cup, the FIFA Club World Cup, and reached three Champions League finals.
Real Madrid, meanwhile, triumphed in the two Champions League finals that Liverpool lost and added another European crown in 2023/24.
Now, Regis Le Bris’ Sunderland side have outdone both of these European heavyweights in World Cup representation, with twelve players competing in North America this summer.
Among them, Brian Brobbey recently scored twice against Sweden in a standout performance. Earlier in the week, Granit Xhaka produced a commanding display against Bosnia and Herzegovina, sealing Switzerland’s 4-1 Group B victory with a 97th-minute penalty.
With every World Cup match featuring a Sunderland player, the club’s name continues to echo louder across the global stage.
Only Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain, Arsenal, Bayern Munich, and Manchester City have more players in North America this summer.
It’s a heartening narrative – not just for English football, but for the sport as a whole. Hope, after all, remains the most powerful force in football, and Sunderland’s resurgence is a wonderful reminder of that truth.
