50 photos of passionate Sunderland fans enjoying their Europa League adventures against AZ Alkmaar & Torreense - gallery

Sunderland supporters are ready to head to the continent once again as their beloved Black Cats travel to Poland to face Lech Poznan in the third game of their historic Europa League campaign.

Lifelong memories have already been created during their previous two games with the Wearside faithful providing a night for the ages at the Stadium of Light as Sunderland marked their long awaited return to European football with a narrow win against Dutch Cup winners AZ Alkmaar. Last week brought a first away day in Europe since 1973 as Regis Le Bris’ side faced Portuguese side Torreense and came away with a dramatic win in the sun thanks to a late Noah Sadiki effort.

All eyes now go on Poland on Thursday as Le Bris and his players look to maintain their perfect start to the league phase - and they will be backed by another impressive show of support as Sunderland fans travel from far and wide. With kick-off rapidly approaching, we take a look at some of the best photos of supporters enjoying their first taste of European football since Bob Stokoe and his legendary 1973 FA Cup winning side competed in the Cup Winners Cup.

The Echo’s Europa League coverage is sponsored by Amari Plastics. Covering all of North East England and Cumbria, Amari Plastics launched in 1975 and has built a reputation as the region's leading plastic distributor. During this time, we’ve established strong working relationships with businesses in three main market sectors: sign, display & large format printing, building & construction and industrial & engineering.

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