Thousands of Sunderland fans sign petition calling for owner Ellis Short to sell the club

A petition calling for Sunderland owner Ellis Short to sell the club has been signed by almost 7,000 supporters.
Sunderland owner Ellis Short.Sunderland owner Ellis Short.
Sunderland owner Ellis Short.

Sunderland supporters group Red and White Army have launched the petition as well as writing an open letter to Short, urging the football club's owner to sell up.

Disillusioned fans have come together to call for Short to 'treat the club with respect' and find a buyer as quickly as possible.

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The petition was only launched on Tuesday afternoon but has already been signed by thousands of Sunderland supporters, with 6,700 fans putting their name to it at the time of writing.

The Black Cats, beaten 1-0 by relegation rivals Bolton Wanderers on Tuesday, are deep in trouble at the bottom of the Championship, staring a second successive relegation in the face.

The Echo understands that Short is looking to sell the club, having seen a summer takeover involving a German consortium collapse.

The billionaire has since reduced his asking price to £50million, down £30million from last summer.

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With attendances dwindling at the Stadium of Light and the club still struggling with large debts - the last accounts revealed £110million of debt - independent supporters organisation Red and White Army has written the open letter and launched the petition.

The open letter says: "Do us a favour Mr Short — sell. Make it your number one priority to source a reputable buyer and go.

"The match day experience is unrecognisable. Thousands of supporters have understandably given up and no longer bother.

"It feels like Sunderland AFC has lost its soul, and with it we'll lose a generation of supporters.

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"There may have been a period in which Ellis Short was enamoured of SAFC, but that time has long passed. By contrast our infatuation lives on, almost 140 years strong, a never-ending blessing and curse. Owners come and owners go. We’re Sunderland ‘til we die.

"We are a club steeped in tradition with its fair share of glory and pain, but through thick and thin this club has had a heartbeat, a lifeblood that is as passionate as they come.

"We are not the tatty, discarded plaything of a frustrated and disillusioned billionaire, who no longer finds novelty in owning a football club."