Can Sunderland defy the Premier League doubters again?

What the report says

BBC Sport says Sunderland enter the new Premier League season with renewed attention after a remarkable return to the top flight. Promoted through the Championship play-offs in May 2025, the club finished seventh in its first season back, ending an eight-year absence from the division and qualifying for Europe for the first time since 1973. The piece asks whether that success can be repeated as the Black Cats face a heavier schedule and widespread predictions that they could struggle.

The article points to three main reasons for caution: Sunderland’s underlying performance metrics last season were weaker than their final league position suggested, the familiar idea of second-season difficulty for promoted clubs, and the extra demands of European football. BBC Sport notes that Sunderland’s expected-goals figures were among the weaker ones in the league, although the team’s results improved later in the season. It also highlights that the Africa Cup of Nations disrupted the squad mid-season, when the club lost six players, and says the team looked stronger once those players returned.

BBC Sport’s analysis suggests the risk of a second-season drop-off is real but not inevitable. It cites past promoted sides that stayed up, including examples that later qualified for Europe and others that fell away, such as Ipswich and Hull. Sunderland will be among the first promoted Premier League teams to balance domestic survival with at least eight Europa League matches, making their campaign a closely watched test of squad depth and management.