Sunderland Association Football Club, founded on 1 January 1879, based in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, competes in the Premier League. The club’s long history is part of its appeal to collectors, and Walkouts lists a rotating selection of signed football shirts and framed retrospectives that speak to both match heritage and retail rarity.
Home matches are staged at the Stadium of Light, having moved from Roker Park in 1997, and the club’s trophy cabinet includes FA Cup successes and a run of league dominance that totals six top-flight titles. Important match locations such as Wembley have framed some of Sunderland’s finest moments, and those match narratives increase demand for shirts from key fixtures and finals.
The team’s red and white striped shirts and black shorts are instantly recognisable, and collectors also note formal standings: the club is ranked 501 by IFFHS, a point of reference when assessing broad historical profile. Provenance, match context and supplier eras all shape desirability, and the club’s Tyne-Wear derby and Roker Park origins remain central to many framed displays.
Anniversary releases are a distinct collecting lane. Post-1970 releases such as the Centenary crested kit, the special 125 years release and the 140 years commemorative detail are short production runs that tie shirts to specific milestones and make them sought after by fans who want a piece of the club’s timeline rather than a generic retail replica.
Certain seasons act as magnets for shirts and memorabilia. The giant-killing FA Cup run of 1972-73 remains a headline memory, while the 1998-99 First Division campaign where Sunderland amassed 105 points, and the subsequent 1999-2000 Premier League campaign, are seasons whose shirts are chased for their on-pitch narratives, player lineups and visible match wear or substitutions that can be corroborated by match photography.
Collector interest is also practical. Early retail runs, player-issue variants and region-specific releases carry different tags and numbering, and clubs like Sunderland have had supplier transitions from Hummel to Asics to Adidas that affect collar styles and label details. The 1979 Centenary commemorative issues and the 1998-99 season shirts are examples where crests, sleeve patches and scarcity combine to drive collector focus, and provenance notes are regularly used to confirm origin.
Iconic away colours add another layer, notably the 1972-73 yellow away shirt linked to that FA Cup progress, and authenticated retail pieces are often offered with a COA to verify signature legitimacy. Items are described by season and match, and connoisseurs prize both framed match-worn shirts and otherwise identical signed retail shirts that were part of early runs or limited regional releases. For fans seeking verified Sunderland pieces from 1972-73 and 1998-99, Walkouts remains a reference for framed shirts and limited editions.
