The Black Cats face Coventry City on Sunday in their first Championship game in over four years.
Alex Neil’s side will be hoping to get off to the best possible start in-front of their own fans and in-front of the TV cameras when they welcome Mark Robins’ side.
The hype surrounding the start of a new season is beginning to ramp up and of course with that, comes plenty of predictions about how the next 46 games will unfold for Sunderland and all of their new Championship rivals.
Here, we take a look at the Daily Mirror’s pre-season Championship predictions to see where they believe Sunderland will finish in the league.
Do these predictions shock you? How do you think Sunderland will do this season? Follow us on our social media channels and let us know your thoughts there.
17. Cardiff City (17th)
Sean Morison helped guide Cardiff to 18th place last year as they finished comfortably above the bottom-three. The Daily Mirror are predicting much of the same for the Bluebirds this time around. Photo: Dan Istitene
18. Hull City (18th)
Losing Keane Lewis-Potter could be a huge blow for Hull as they look to build on last season’s 19th place finish. The Daily Mirror are expecting them to push on from last year, but only by a single place. Photo: Justin Setterfield
19. Rotherham United (19th)
A minor blip at the end of last season looked like derailing Paul Warne’s side but they bounced back to yet again secure promotion back to the Championship. The Daily Mirror are predicting that the Millers will, this time, avoid a return straight back to League One. Photo: Henry Browne
20. Wigan Athletic (20th)
Wigan secured promotion from the third-tier with relative ease last season and although it will be a struggle for them at times this year, the Daily Mirror don’t believe they will be one of the unlucky sides to be relegated come May. Photo: Charlotte Tattersall