| Club: | Sunderland |
| Season: | 1996–97 |
| Manager: | Peter Reid |
| Chairman: | Bob Murray |
| Stadium: | Roker Park |
| League: | Premiership |
| League Result: | 18th (relegated) |
| Cup1: | FA Cup |
| Cup1 Result: | Third round |
| Cup2: | League Cup |
| Cup2 Result: | Third round |
| League Topscorer: | Russell/Stewart (4) |
| Highest Attendance: | 22,512 vs Derby County (26 Dec 1996, Premier League) |
| Lowest Attendance: | 10,659 vs Watford (24 Sep 1996, League Cup) |
| Average Attendance: | 20,865 |
| Prevseason: | 1995–96 |
| Nextseason: | 1997–98 |
During the 1996–97 English football season, Sunderland competed in the FA Premier League (known as the FA Carling Premiership for sponsorship reasons).
Just one year after they had almost slipped into Division Two, Sunderland had returned to the top flight under new manager Peter Reid. With a new 42,000-seat stadium due to be ready in the summer of 1997, Reid and his players were determined to secure survival in the final season at historic Roker Park and give the new stadium at Monkwearmouth a debut season in the Premiership.
The first half of the season went well for club, finding themselves in a comfortable 11th position by the end of January, boasting a strong home form going into the February. However, a run of 4 consecutive defeats against Aston Villa, Leeds United, Blackburn Rovers and Tottenham Hospur saw them slip down to 16th by March.
Sunderland lost 1–0 to Wimbledon on the final day of the season; with Coventry City's win at Tottenham, the Wearsiders were relegated.
On a high note, Sunderland did manage to beat Chelsea (3–0), Arsenal (1–0) and Manchester United (2–1) all at home during the season.
See main article: 1996–97 FA Premier League.
Sunderland's score comes first[1]
| Win | Draw | Loss |
| Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorers | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17 August 1996 | Leicester City | H | 0–0 | 19,262 | ||
| 21 August 1996 | Nottingham Forest | A | 4–1 | 22,874 | Gray, Quinn (2), Ord | |
| 24 August 1996 | Liverpool | A | 0–0 | 40,503 | ||
| 4 September 1996 | Newcastle United | H | 1–2 | 22,037 | Scott (pen) | |
| 8 September 1996 | West Ham United | H | 0–0 | 18,642 | ||
| 14 September 1996 | Derby County | A | 0–1 | 17,692 | ||
| 21 September 1996 | Coventry City | H | 1–0 | 19,459 | Agnew | |
| 28 September 1996 | Arsenal | A | 0–2 | 38,016 | ||
| 14 October 1996 | Middlesbrough | H | 2–2 | 20,936 | Rae (pen), Russell | |
| 19 October 1996 | Southampton | A | 0–3 | 15,225 | ||
| 26 October 1996 | Aston Villa | H | 1–0 | 21,059 | Stewart | |
| 2 November 1996 | Leeds United | A | 0–3 | 31,667 | ||
| 16 November 1996 | Tottenham Hotspur | A | 0–2 | 31,867 | ||
| 23 November 1996 | Sheffield Wednesday | H | 1–1 | 20,644 | Melville | |
| 30 November 1996 | Everton | A | 3–1 | 40,087 | Russell, Bridges (2) | |
| 7 December 1996 | Wimbledon | H | 1–3 | 19,672 | Melville | |
| 15 December 1996 | Chelsea | H | 3–0 | 19,683 | Duberry (own goal), Ball, Russell | |
| 21 December 1996 | Manchester United | A | 0–5 | 55,081 | ||
| 26 December 1996 | Derby County | H | 2–0 | 22,512 | Ord, Russell | |
| 28 December 1996 | West Ham United | A | 0–2 | 24,077 | ||
| 1 January 1997 | Coventry City | A | 2–2 | 17,700 | Bridges, Agnew (pen) | |
| 11 January 1997 | Arsenal | H | 1–0 | 21,154 | Adams (own goal) | |
| 18 January 1997 | Blackburn Rovers | H | 0–0 | 20,850 | ||
| 29 January 1997 | Leicester City | A | 1–1 | 17,883 | Williams | |
| 1 February 1997 | Aston Villa | A | 0–1 | 32,491 | ||
| 22 February 1997 | Leeds United | H | 0–1 | 21,890 | ||
| 1 March 1997 | Blackburn Rovers | A | 0–1 | 24,208 | ||
| 4 March 1997 | Tottenham Hotspur | H | 0–4 | 20,785 | ||
| 8 March 1997 | Manchester United | H | 2–1 | 22,225 | Gray, Mullin | |
| 12 March 1997 | Sheffield Wednesday | A | 1–2 | 20,294 | Ball | |
| 16 March 1997 | Chelsea | A | 2–6 | 24,027 | Stewart, Rae | |
| 22 March 1997 | Nottingham Forest | H | 1–1 | 22,120 | Ball | |
| 5 April 1997 | Newcastle United | A | 1–1 | 36,582 | Gray | |
| 13 April 1997 | Liverpool | H | 1–2 | 21,938 | Stewart | |
| 19 April 1997 | Middlesbrough | A | 1–0 | 30,106 | Williams | |
| 22 April 1997 | Southampton | H | 0–1 | 21,521 | ||
| 3 May 1997 | Everton | H | 3–0 | 22,108 | Stewart (pen), Waddle, Johnston | |
| 11 May 1997 | Wimbledon | A | 0–1 | 21,338 |
See main article: 1996–97 FA Cup.
| R3 | 4 January 1997 | Arsenal | A | 1–1 | 37,793 | Gray | |
| R3R | 15 January 1997 | Arsenal | H | 0–2 | 15,277 |
See main article: 1996–97 Football League Cup.
| R2 1st Leg | 17 September 1996 | Watford | A | 2–0 | 9,136 | Quinn, Rae | |
| R2 2nd Leg | 24 September 1996 | Watford | H | 1–0 (won 3–0 on agg) | 10,659 | Scott | |
| R3 | 23 October 1996 | Tottenham Hotspur | A | 1–2 | 24,867 | Ball |
|-! colspan=14 style=background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center| Goalkeepers|-! colspan=14 style=background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center| Defenders|-! colspan=14 style=background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center| Midfielders|-! colspan=14 style=background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center| Forwards|-|}
| Date | Pos. | Name | From | Fee | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 June 1996 | MF | Alex Rae | Millwall | £1,000,000 | |
| 11 July 1996 | FW | Paul Conlon | Hartlepool United | Free transfer | |
| 18 July 1996 | GK | Tony Coton | Manchester United | £600,000 | |
| 1 August 1996 | FW | Chris Tate | York City | Signed | |
| 1 August 1996 | GK | Lionel Pérez | Bordeaux | £200,000 | |
| 17 August 1996 | FW | Niall Quinn | Manchester City | £1,300,000 | |
| 18 October 1996 | DF | Darren Williams | York City | £50,000 | |
| 7 January 1997 | DF | Jan Eriksson | Helsingborgs IF | £250,000 | |
| 17 March 1997 | MF | Chris Waddle | Bradford City | £75,000 | |
| 21 March 1997 | MF | Kim Heiselberg | Esbjerg fB | £125,000 | |
| 26 March 1997 | GK | Chris Woods | Colorado Rapids | Signed | |
| 1 April 1997 | MF | Allan Johnston | Rennes | £550,000 |
| Date | Pos. | Name | To | Fee | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 July 1996 | GK | Alec Chamberlain | Watford | £40,000 | |
| 27 July 1996 | DF | Scott Coates | Berwick Rangers | Signed | |
| 1 August 1996 | MF | Brian Atkinson | Darlington | Free transfer | |
| 1 August 1996 | MF | Gordon Armstrong | Bury | Free transfer | |
| 22 November 1996 | FW | Brett Angell | Stockport County | £120,000 | |
| 14 February 1997 | FW | Steve Brodie | Scarborough | Free transfer |
Transfers in: £4,150,000
Transfers out: £160,000
Total spending: £3,990,000