Sunderland and Coventry City’s long-standing rivalry explained ahead of Championship season opener

Most footballing rivalries are based on geographical factors. Some are based on sporting factors that see two clubs dominate for trophies as they duel to show who is the ‘best of the best’.

But for Sunderland and Coventry, teams that are separated by over 200 miles, their rivalry is a little different.

It’s unlikely that Alex Neil or Mark Robins will use this rivalry for extra motivation for their clash, but for a generation of Sunderland fans, Sunday provides an opportunity to reignite a long-standing rivalry.

But what is this rivalry and just where, when and how did it begin?

Rivalry origins

The rivalry between Sunderland and Coventry City dates back to the 1976/77 season - but doesn’t actually involve a match between the two clubs.

Heading into the final game of the season, that was played on a Thursday because of a fixture pile-up, both Sunderland and Coventry were in danger of relegation from the top-flight.

In order to survive, Sunderland, who faced Everton at Goodison Park, had to match Coventry’s result against fellow relegation-threatened side Bristol City.

What happened?

Both games were scheduled to kick-off at the same time, however, because of traffic congestion outside Highfield Road, Jimmy Hill, who was managing director of Coventry at the time, delayed kick-off by 15 minutes in order to let fans into the ground.

This meant that Sunderland’s match with Everton finished before the end of the clash between Coventry and Bristol City.

The Black Cats were defeated 2-0 by the Toffees that day, a result that was subsequently broadcast over the tannoy system at Highfield Road.

Both sets of players thus knew that a draw would be enough to ensure each team would survive the drop.

The game, that was finely poised at 2-2 at that point having seen Bristol City recover from a two-goal deficit, petered out with both teams happy to share the points - meaning Sunderland were relegated by a single point.

The Black Cats then spent three seasons in the second division before returning to the top-flight in 1980. Coventry, meanwhile, remained a top-flight side throughout Sunderland’s absence.