Sunderland fans are deserving of their recent success after years of disaster and disappointment.
Among back-to-back relegations, the Black Cats had endured 12 different managers in the previous 10 years prior to their promotion back to the Championship.
There have been very few that were praised during their time on Wearside, while most failed to do what so many had tried and were sent packing after a very short period of time.
Tony Mowbray has been the first gaffer in a while that we have been able to appreciate, enjoy and feel pretty certain that he isn’t leaving us anytime soon – touch wood.
With all the horrible memories behind us, we thought it would be great to bring them back up again and let you know exactly what Sunderland’s last 12 managers are doing right now.
Martin O’Neill (2011-2013)
Martin O’Neill was one of Sunderland’s better managers during a torrid spell in the Premier League, challenging for a spot in Europe before finishing 13th in the table in his first season.
O’Neill went onto manage Republic of Ireland and Nottingham Forest but has been out of work since 2019, though he is occasionally spotted working in punditry and in the media.
The 71-year-old admitted earlier this year that he misses management and would consider the right job.
Paolo Di Canio (2013)
Paolo Di Canio’s career in management ended following his sacking from Sunderland in 2013.
The Italian was since linked with the Celtic job the following year and went onto apply for jobs with Bolton Wanderers and Rotherham United.
In 2021, Di Canio admitted that his ‘dream’ is to come back as a manger to England.
Gus Poyet (2013-2015)
Gus Poyet was a fan favourite – guiding Sunderland to the League Cup final and also performing The Great Escape.
Following his departure from Wearside, the Uruguayan took up jobs with AEK Athens, Real Betis, Shanghai Shenhua, Bordeaux and Universidad Catolica. He has been manager of the Greece national team since February 2022 and helped them earn promotion in last year’s Nations League.
Dick Advocaat (2015)
After spending only seven months with Sunderland, Advocaat spent a large chunk of his remaining career in the Netherlands. He managed the national team, Fenerbahce, Sparta Rotterdam, Utrecht, Feyenoord, Iraq and ADO Den Haag.
The 76-year-old retired from coaching at the end of last season.
Sam Allardyce (2015-2016)
Sam Allardyce’s departure from Sunderland was heartbreaking for supporters, with many blaming the club’s relegation on his move to the England national team.
The 68-year-old has since had brief spells with Crystal Palace, Everton, West Brom and Leeds United, but has now been out of work since his exit from Elland Road in the summer.
Allardyce now hosts a podcast called ‘No Tippy Tappy Football with Sam Allardyce’.
David Moyes (2016-17)
One of the most disliked Sunderland managers but also arguably the most successful since leaving Sunderland.
The Scot’s first stint at West Ham was underwhelming, however his return to the London outfit saw him guide the club to Europa Conference League glory. They now sit seventh in the Premier League table after eight games.
Simon Grayson (2017)
One of a number of managers that Sunderland fans will wish to forget.
Grayson only lasted four months before he was sacked. He went onto manage Bradford City, Blackpool and Fleetwood Town, before joining Indian Super League club Bengaluru last summer.
Chris Coleman (2017-2018)
Chris Coleman is probably mostly remembered for his presence on Sunderland’s Netflix documentary, but he was otherwise another disappointment at the club.
The Welshman cashed in when he joined Hebei China Fortune two months after he was dismissed. He then spent three years out of work before moving to Greece with Atromitos in 2022.
Jack Ross (2018-2019)
There was a lot of hope around Jack Ross to get us straight back to the Championship, especially with the players he had.
The 47-year-old’s failure to do so cost him his job and he has since managed Hibernian and Dundee United.
Ross was sacked by the Scottish club last summer and he went onto make the surprise move to Newcastle United as their interim head of coach development in March.
Phil Parkinson (2019-2020)
Phil Parkinson was arguably the worst manager out of the lot and lasted longer than he should have on Wearside.
Parky was appointed Wrexham boss the following year and helped them achieve promotion to League Two following Ryan Reynold’s and Rob Mcelhenney’s arrival.
Lee Johnson (2020-2022)
Lee Johnson lasted 13 months in Sunderland before the club realised he was never going to win us promotion.
The 42-year-old went onto do a very poor job at Hibs before he was appointed manager of Fleetwood Town in the summer.
Alex Neil (2022)
Alex Neil’s departure was one of the hardest to take at the time, but it is pretty easy to talk about these days.
The Scot left Sunderland for Stoke City (and the money) following our promotion to the Championship and we went onto replace him with Tony Mowbray.
We went onto reach the play-offs and now sit fourth in the league table, while Neil’s job is hanging on by a thread as the Potters sit two points above the relegation zone.