List of Sunderland A.F.C. players

Sunderland Association Football Club was founded in 1879, and turned professional in 1886. This list contains all players that have played 100 or more first-class matches for the club. However, some players who have played fewer matches are also included. This includes players who have set a club playing record, such as goalscoring or transfer fee records.
Jimmy Montgomery holds the record for Sunderland appearances, having played 627 matches between 1960 and 1977, followed by Len Ashurst who made 459 appearances. As of 21 March 2009, the player who has won most international caps while at the club is Charlie Hurley with 36 for Republic of Ireland. Alf Common became the first transfer to reach £1,000 after moving to Middlesbrough from Sunderland in 1905.
The goalscoring record is held by Bobby Gurney, with 227 goals in all competitions, in 390 appearances, scored between 1925 and 1950. Charlie Buchan is the next highest goalscorer, closely behind Gurney with 221 goals, in 411 games, from 1911 to 1925. Dave Halliday holds the record for the most goals scored in a season, set in 1928–29, with 43 league goals in 42 games in the First Division. Halliday also holds a high goalscoring ratio while at Sunderland, scoring 175 goals in 164 games, with a goal every 0.94 games. Defender Charlie Hurley was voted as Sunderland's "Player of the Century" in the club's centenary season in 1979.

Players

Players are listed according to the date of their first-team debut for the club. Appearances and goals are for first-team competitive matches only; wartime matches are excluded. Substitute appearances are included.
Players with name in bold are Sunderland record holders.

Players with nationality in bold won full international caps for their country while with the club.

Name	Nationality	Position	Date from	Date to	Appearances	Goals	Notes	Club source	National source
		Defender	1884	1886	5	0
		Midfielder	1888	1896	102	7
	'	Defender	1889	1894	93	0
	'	Goalkeeper	1890	1904	456	0
		Forward	1890 1891	1892 1897	148	52
		Defender	1890	1895	115	15
		Forward	1890	1896	113	29
		Forward	1890	1897	215	151
		Midfielder	1890	1897	108	12
		Forward	1890 1900	1896 1904	260	122
	'	Midfielder	1890	1899	258	46
		Defender	1891 1893	1892 1897	113	1
		Midfielder	1891	1897	172	78
		Defender	1893	1898	146	6
		Defender	1894	1900	157	0
		Defender	1896	1902	182	5
		Defender	1897	1904	223	5
		Midfielder	1898	1902	129	32
		Defender	1898	1905	167	10
		Midfielder	1899	1907	196	18
	'	Defender	1899	1904	164	6
	'	Forward	1899	1909	302	86
		Forward	1900 1901	1904 1905	43	11
		Defender	1900	1907	225	0
		Forward	1900	1912	228	46
		Defender	1902	1908	119	5
	'	Forward	1902	1912	347	116
	'	Forward	1904	1919	316	155
	'	Defender	1906	1912	195	3
		Defender	1907	1911	112	0
		Defender	1907	1911	102	0
		Midfielder	1907	1915	227	37
		Defender	1908	1914	139	0
	'	Defender	1908	1915	264	8
		Defender	1909	1912	108	0
	'	Forward	1908	1920	294	80
	'	Midfielder	1909	1921	189	4
		Defender	1911	1919	102	0
	'	Forward	1911	1925	411	221
	'	Forward	1912	1922	213	23
		Defender	1913	1922	172	0
		Defender	1913	1924	152	2
		Defender	1919	1930	351	0
		Midfielder	1920	1927	202	32
		Forward	1920	1928	207	73
		Defender	1920	1929	256	12
		Midfielder	1921	1927	147	39
		Defender	1921	1931	244	2
	'	Defender	1922	1927	190	0
	'	Goalkeeper	1923 1934	1929 1935	227	0
	'	Midfielder	1923	1930	272	44
'	'	Forward	1925	1950	390	227
'		Forward	1925	1929	175	164
		Defender	1925	1936	328	0
		Defender	1929	1934	184	3
	'	Forward	1929	1938	309	108
		Defender	1929	1939	238	1
		Defender	1930	1935	217	5
		Goalkeeper	1930	1936	139	0
	'	Forward	1930	1939	284	62
	'	Midfielder	1930	1946	304	8
	'	Defender	1931	1939	166	0
	'	Defender	1931	1939	264	8
		Forward	1932	1936	162	40
	'	Defender	1932	1938	113	6
	'	Midfielder	1932	1939	281	132
		Midfielder	1935	1948	156	30
		Forward	1935	1952	248	54
		Goalkeeper	1935	1954	387	0
		Defender	1937	1939	103	1
		Forward	1946	1953	154	80
		Defender	1946	1953	224	1
		Midfielder	1946	1953	171	18
		Defender	1946	1953	105	1
	'	Defender	1946	1954	223	17
		Defender	1946	1956	272	8
		Defender	1947	1957	275	0
	'	Forward	1948	1957	348	101
	'	Midfielder	1949	1954	180	54
		Forward	1949	1955	101	18
	'	Forward	1950	1957	117	70
	'	Forward	1950	1958	227	46
		Defender	1950	1958	295	0
	'	Defender	1951	1958	267	3
	'	Defender	1952	1964	447	35
		Defender	1953	1957	153	7
		Midfielder	1953	1958	212	26
	'	Goalkeeper	1954	1958	143	0
	'	Defender	1954	1958	155	1
		Forward	1955	1958	122	72
	'	Forward	1957	1960	124	14
	'	Midfielder	1957	1963	174	43
'	'	Defender	1957	1969	401	26
		Goalkeeper	1958	1962	151	0
		Defender	1958	1964	168	2
		Midfielder	1958	1967	323	18
		Defender	1958	1970	459	4
		Defender	1958	1971	350	1
	'	Midfielder	1959	1972	357	5
		Forward	1960	1966	117	62
'		Goalkeeper	1960	1977	627	0
		Midfielder	1961	1969	318	55
	'	Forward	1961	1969	318	55
	'	Forward	1962	1969	289	66
		Midfielder	1964	1979	432	69
		Midfielder	1968	1974	111	23
		Defender	1966	1971	191	3
	'	Midfielder	1967	1977	335	81
		Midfielder	1967	1977	270	20
		Midfielder	1968	1971	135	16
		Midfielder	1968	1974	218	56
		Defender	1969	1973	126	12
		Midfielder	1969	1973	145	7
	'	Defender	1970	1975	212	33
		Defender	1970	1976	282	2
		Forward	1972	1984	296	103
		Defender	1972	1979	165	3
		Midfielder	1972	1981	325	12
		Forward	1973	1976	138	42
		Defender	1974	1976	101	2
		Forward	1974 1979 1983	1976 1980 1984	182	68
	'	Forward	1974	1977	124	22
		Defender	1975	1982	218	6
		Forward	1976	1979	122	33
		Goalkeeper	1976	1982	192	0
		Midfielder	1977	1982	152	18
		Defender	1977	1986	368	11
		Midfielder	1978	1983	135	8
		Defender	1978	1984	128	3
		Defender	1978	1985	235	16
		Goalkeeper	1978	1986	224	1
		Midfielder	1979	1985	165	32
		Forward	1981	1985	122	28
	'	Midfielder	1981	1986	209	18
		Defender	1981	1986	205	3
		Midfielder	1983 1989 1995	1984 1992 1997	270	6
		Midfielder	1983	1987	138	23
		Forward	1984	1990	219	55
		Midfielder	1984	1990	126	19
		Defender	1984	1995	443	25			-
		Defender	1985	1989	169	8
		Defender	1985	1991	170	0
		Midfielder	1985	1995	416	61
		Midfielder	1986	1988	115	2
		Goalkeeper	1986	1989	112	0
		Defender	1987	1990	153	22
		Forward	1987	1991	185	87
		Defender	1987	1993	239	0
		Midfielder	1987	1994	320	27
		Defender	1987	1998	284	8
	'	Midfielder	1988	1992	149	25
	'	Goalkeeper	1988	1995	227	0
'		Forward	1989	1991	65	11
		Defender	1989	1992	129	12
		Midfielder	1989	1995	169	6
		Defender	1990	1999	388	27
		Forward	1991	1994	132	47
		Forward	1991	1997	175	34
	'	Defender	1992	2004	410	17
		Goalkeeper	1993	1996	108	0
	'	Forward	1993	1996	134	41
	'	Defender	1993	1999	236	14
		Midfielder	1993	1999	145	28
		Defender	1994	1997	150	0
		Defender	1994	1999	126	11
		Forward	1996 2004 2004	1999 2004 2005	113	23
		Midfielder	1996	2001	136	15
	'	Forward	1996	2002	220	69
	'	Midfielder	1997	1999	101	20
		Midfielder	1997	2000	108	8
		Defender	1997	2001	142	1
		Defender	1997	2003	168	2
'	'	Forward	1997	2004	235	130
		Defender	1997	2004	238	6
	'	Goalkeeper	1998	2003	197	0
	'	Midfielder	1998	2003	135	13
	'	Defender	1998 2008	2006 2012	203	0
	'	Midfielder	1999	2003	123	9
		Defender	2000	2006	177	23
	'	Forward	2001	2006	109	19
		Forward	2002	2005	119	39
	'	Defender	2003	2006	115	7
		Midfielder	2003	2009	113	11
	'	Defender	2004	2009	163	3
		Midfielder	2004	2009	200	14
	'	Goalkeeper	2007	2012	95	0
	'	Forward	2007	2010	101	28
		Midfielder	2007	2012	149	15
		Midfielder	2008	2014	136	5
	'	Midfielder	2008	2014	176	11
		Defender	2008	2011	112	2
		Midfielder	2009	2019	258	10
	'	Forward	2009	2011	60	35
	'	Forward	2010	2012	37	11
	'	Goalkeeper	2010	2013	101	0
		Midfielder	2011	2014	100	14
	'	Midfielder	2011	2017	203	14
	'	Defender	2011	2018	256	4
	Scotland'	Forward	2012	2016	108	23
	England'	Midfielder	2012	2016	141	22
'	England	Goalkeeper	2015	2017
'	'	Midfielder	2016	2018	54	1
	'	Midfielder	2016	2023	246	25

''Statistics are correct as of 4 May 2024''