The Sunderland AFC coaching staff under first-team manager Regis Le Bris has a host of experienced minds. So, who is in the Black Cats’ backroom team at the Stadium of Light?
Sunderland manager: Regis Le Bris
Kyril Louis-Dreyfus and Juan Sartori, the owners of Sunderland, named Regis Le Bris as their first-team manager in June 2024 after Mike Dodds’ interim role came to an end. He took charge at Sunderland ahead of the 2024/25 campaign.
Sunderland’s appointment of Le Bris meant he became the club’s first permanent manager since February 2024 after Michael Beale was sacked. He signed a three-year deal at the Stadium of Light which will take him until June 2027.
Previously, Le Bris only held coaching roles in his home nation of France as he eventually worked his way up into a first-team managerial role in 2022 at Lorient. There, he spent two years leading the club before their relegation from Ligue 1 in the 2023/24 campaign saw the two part ways.
Now, Le Bris will look to progress his career in England as he aims to establish the Black Cats as a force in the Premier League after achieving an incredible promotion last season.
Sunderland coaching staff
First-team assistant head coach: Luciano Vulcano
Upon promotion to the top flight, Le Bris organised a slight shake-up of his coaching staff. Among those changes, Luciano Vulcano was appointed his new head assistant.
The 37-year-old Italian has previously worked as an analyst at top clubs like Fiorentina, AC Milan, and Inter Milan in his home country.
He served as assistant manager at Al-Nassr in the Saudi Pro League from September 2024 through to June 2025 before joining Sunderland.
Fans will love Vulcano’s outlook on football and his ambition. Earlier this season, he said: “Every match we play is an opportunity to show our commitment, our style of play to our fans. We want to go to the next chapter every time to improve our levels. We may win, we may lose but we will try our best for sure.”
First-team assistant coach: Isidre Ramon Madir
Along with Vulcano, Le Bris also brought in Isidre Ramon Madir in the summer of 2025. The Spaniard has a wealth of experience across Europe’s top leagues, working as an analyst for Barcelona, Celta Vigo, Valencia and the Spanish national team, as well as at Watford, Nice, and PSG.
The 51-year-old has also been assistant manager for the Iraq national team and he now takes on the role of assistant coach for the Sunderland first team.
First-team assistant coach: Pedro Ribeiro
Pedro Ribeiro was appointed as Sunderland’s new assistant coach in October 2024 after a long search for Le Bris’ right-hand man.
The 38-year-old arrived at the Stadium of Light with 19 years of coaching experience. This has been completed at clubs such as 1860 Munich and Al-Ahli.
On top of this, he has also been a manager, taking charge of multiple teams in his native Portugal like Belenenses SAD and FC Penafiel.
First-team coach: Michael Proctor
Sunderland handed Michael Proctor his first position in any coaching staff under Alex Neil in July 2022. It also marked a return to the Stadium of Light for the coach, who started his playing career with the Black Cats. Proctor made his senior debut in 1998 and later retired in 2009.
Peter Reid plucked Proctor out of the academy ranks at Sunderland for his first-team bow in an EFL Cup tie at Everton. The attacker also progressed to play sparingly at the senior level over the next six years. Proctor left Sunderland for Rotherham in 2004 after a spate of loans.
His playing career would also feature Hartlepool before joining Wrexham in 2007. Proctor’s time at the Racecourse Ground saw him become an instant hero by helping the Red Dragons avoid relegation from League Two, but they ultimately bowed out of the EFL one year later.
Head of goalkeeping: Alessandro Barcherini
Sunderland appointed Alessandro Barcherini to his role as the club’s head of goalkeeping in August 2022. The Black Cats poached the goalkeeping coach from Leeds United to head up their department. He had worked at Elland Road since August 2019 after a spell with Stoke.
Barcherini acted as an assistant first-team coach as well as the head of goalkeeping for Leeds’ academy. His switch to West Yorkshire marked a promotion having served as the lead academy goalkeeping coach at Stoke. He also held the role at Notts County until 2018.
Notts County appointed Barcherini in 2015 as the Italian returned to working in football. He had taken three years out after working as a match analyst at Nottingham Forest to work for Nike and later Nottingham Trent University. It was also Barcherini’s return to Notts County.
Barcherini played for Notts County from 2002 to 2004 before pursuing a career as a coach in 2010. His role at Nottingham Forest then arrived in 2011 to aid the Tricky Trees’ under-18 staff. While Barcherini headed Nottingham Trent University’s football program from 2014 to 2017.
Goalkeeper coach: Neil Cutler
Neil Cutler was the third new coaching addition to the Sunderland roster in the summer preceding their return to the Premier League, and is working alongside Alessandro Barcherini in the goalkeeping department.
On Sunderland’s vision for progress, Cutler said: “It takes real togetherness. But it also takes an openness to change – new players, new ideas, new challenges. Sunderland has that mindset. It’s a club that wants to move forward.
“It’s about pushing standards. But also understanding the person behind the gloves. What drives them? What do they need? Because once you’ve got trust, you’ve got growth.”
Cutler has previously coached at Bury, Scunthorpe, Walsall, West Brom, Aston Villa, Wolves, and worked with the England U20 team.