Opinion: Poor Sunderland Home Fans Atmosphere & A Potential Way To Improve It

This season, the atmosphere at the Stadium of Light has not been up to par. The reason behind it and even the solution could be very simple.

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When it comes to away fans, Sunderland are amongst some of the very best in the country. Statistics don't lie, with an average away attendance of 2,841 as of January 9th, 2025. This makes Sunderland the second best in the EFL Championship just behind Leeds United.

However over recent years, there has been a pattern of 'poor' home atmosphere at the Stadium of Light, one leading theory, that many personally subscribe to is the placement of away fans at the Stadium of Light.

Away fans are positioned at the very top of the stadium and on the opposite side as to where the Black Cats singing end is located (South stand/Roker end). Clearly, this leaves little room for back-and-forth dialogue between both sets of fans and instead usually results in neither set of fans hearing each other.

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There are many examples of both EFL Championship stadiums and Premier League stadiums which have home and away fans directly next to each other in order to enhance the atmosphere. In fact, one would argue it is only the two North East teams Sunderland and Newcastle which don't seat away fans and home fans directly next to each other and close to the pitch. Some great examples include Burnley's Turf Moor, West Brom's Hawthorns and Arsenal's Emirates; as clear examples of stadium layouts that increase atmosphere.

With Sunderland's average home attendance this year being 40,190, it is evident there should be no issues with atmosphere with Sunderland's attendance being the 9th largest within England bigger than clubs such as Everton (39,165) and Chelsea (40.037).

Sunderland's stadium is also the 8th largest in England, bigger than Aston Villa's Villa Park, one of England's oldest and most iconic stadiums. All this evidence points to the explanation that moving away fans closer to the home fans and the pitch will increase Sunderland's home atmosphere and make it a more enjoyable fan experience.