Nella stagione 2006-2007, sotto la guida di Roy Keane, al suo debutto nelle vesti di allenatore, il Sunderland si laureò vincitore della Football League Championship, guadagnandosi così il ritorno in Premier League. ###>After promotion from Division One in the 1995–96 season, Sunderland began their first season in the Premier League, but finished third from the bottom and were relegated back to the First Division.