The 34 surprising famous faces who support Sunderland AFC - including TV, music and film stars: photo gallery
From sports stars to TV personalities and musicians to local heroes, the Black Cats have a number of famous fans – including some surprising and international names. Over the years, we have seen many celebrities come out and publicly announce their support of the Wearside club. Here, we take a look at the famous faces who support Sunderland:
1. Jordan Henderson
The Sunderland-born Liverpool captain is a big Black Cats fan having risen through the club's academy. The England international was spotted in the crowd amongst Sunderland supporters as the Wearsiders lost the Capital One Cup final to Manchester City back in 2014. Photo: Laurence Griffiths
2. Billy Hardy
Sunderland-born Billy Hardy is a former bantamweight and featherweight boxing champion. Unfortunately, Hardy never captured a world title but did fight all-time great Prince Naseem Hamed in a high-profile bout. Photo: Mark Thompson
3. Paul Collingwood
The England cricket star-turned-coach was born in County Durham and has been a long-standing supporter of the Black Cats. Photo: Gareth Copley
4. Tom A Smith
The young up-and-coming musician recently played on the pitch at the Stadium of Light at half-time and is receiving rave reviews for his music, regularly appearing on the BBC. His music is available on YouTube, Apple Music and Spotify. Photo: YouTube