Bought a Sunderland season ticket for 2025/2026? Welcome (back) to the house of fun!

Strong season ticket sales this week are a promising indication, indicating that fans are rekindling their faith in Sunderland following a difficult period since 2017! Confession time: I renewed my Sunderland season ticket well before the playoff drama and our remarkable return to the Premier League. When the early bird window opened, I’d seen enough progress under Régis Le Bris to believe that 2025/2026 would be another successful season, and I was therefore more than willing to commit once more — regardless of whether we were watching Championship or Premier League football next season.

I wasn’t alone in doing this, as thousands of others opted in, with the prospect of seeing top-tier football for very reasonable costs a real possibility. It was a red-or-black, either/or situation, and no one could predict which way it would go.

Photo by Robbie Jay Barratt – AMA/Getty Images

Then came Coventry. And Dan Ballard. And Sheffield United. And Tommy Watson. Sunderland were suddenly back in the big time, and amid a wave of euphoria over what we’d accomplished, is it fair to assume that those who hadn’t already signed up for next season — or were once season ticket holders but had changed their minds — were given the final push they needed to secure a seat for what promises to be a memorable ride next season? The answer has to be ‘yes’ based on this week’s sales results, and it’s been extremely encouraging to see such a strong show of support in the club’s direction.

However, amidst the enthusiasm, it was slightly galling to see a smattering of social media remarks such as ‘Where were you when we were in League One?’ and the like. Yes, there was a minority of voices, but was this really the moment to poke fun at other Sunderland fans? The truth is, there is a story behind every season ticket. A human narrative about emotions, personal circumstances, financial issues, and family arrangements. Everyone makes various sacrifices in order to follow the Lads and support Sunderland. Despite the fact that we all share a common love, AFC is frequently a really personal experience.

Photo by Robbie Jay Barratt – AMA/Getty Images

Why should individuals who have chosen to rejoin the fold for 2025/2026 be chastised for doing so under the false premise that they were once’stay-away fans’? The idea that you aren’t a true Sunderland fan because you didn’t sit through endless cold, windy, and terrible games in the third division of English football doesn’t make sense to me, and attempting to serve as gatekeepers of Sunderland fandom is simply not what we should be about. We’ve taken more kickings in the last decade than most fans have in thirty years, and no matter what anyone else says, that’s not easy to recover from.

Following 2016 and the elation of top-flight survival under Sam Allardyce, we entered a long-term slump that many of us could not have predicted. Relegations. Financial mismanagement. Recruitment that was frequently lacklustre at best and outright offensive at worst. False dawns, crushed hopes and humiliation, agony and fear, all played out in front of Netflix cameras and broadcast to a global audience, many of whom may have been unaware of our club’s condition before tuning in for the first time. Such struggles and tribulations take a toll on you, no matter how unconditional your passion for a club may be. Although we’re very much on an upward trajectory and have been for a number of years.

OK, full confidence may take some time to rebuild in certain quarters, which is understandable given the calibre of some of the people who have occupied the boardroom over the last decade, but it goes without saying that Kristjaan Speakman and his team have done an outstanding job for Sunderland.

Photo by John Walton/PA Images via Getty Images

That is without a doubt, and their task is to repay the supporters’ faith by constructing a club that can compete and provide us with a basis on which to grow in the coming years — and we will certainly do our part, both at home and away. A packed Stadium of Light, filled with the thrilling and amazing atmosphere we witnessed against Coventry City, will be critical next season. Premier League football will be a bloody difficult task, as everyone knows, but it is a challenge we should take on together and enjoy. Let me continue by highlighting the unique stories behind each season ticket.

Among those signing up this week may have been fathers and sons doing so for the first time — imagine how excited those kids will be for next season? — or fans who lost faith and drifted away during the League One years but have been enticed back in by the promise of better days ahead. Regardless of your background, race, age, or personal circumstances, Sunderland AFC is a club where you should feel at home. That is how we have always aspired to be, and that is what we should strive for in the future.

Read more on sportupdates.co.ukindication, indicating that fans are rekindling their faith in Sunderland following

Read more on sportupdates.co.uk