Sunderland Personalised Gifts
Our Sunderland Gifts are unofficial products, and are in no way affiliated with Sunderland FC, unless specifically stated in the product information.
Sunderland Memorabilia and Gift Ideas
GoneDigging has a fabulous range of personalised Sunderland merchandise, including unique memorabilia and great gift ideas. Below you will find a selection of our most popular Sunderland gifts, in addition to a few interesting facts about the Black Cats.
Brief History of Sunderland FC
Sunderland FC was founded in 1879 by local school teacher James Allan. He left the club when it began to move towards professionalism, forming a break-away team called Sunderland Albion FC. The two teams remained bitter rivals until Sunderland Albion folded in 1892. The disbanding of Sunderland Albion coincided with the Black Cats winning their first top flight title. Sunderland FC won five further First Division titles before the 1940s and also finished as runners-up on five occasions. The club received much critical acclaim during this period and stayed in the top flight for a total of sixty-eight consecutive seasons – a feat only bettered by Arsenal. The Black Cats’ success was affected by scandal in 1957 when Sunderland was found guilty of paying their players too much money. The club was fined and the off-field distraction led to relegation. This preceded some inconsistent results, but the Black Cats bounced back and became a regular member of the Premiership in the new millennium.
Sunderland has also enjoyed some wonderful cup runs over the years, including great FA Cup success in 1973. The Black Cats reached the League Cup final for the first time in 1985.
Did you know…
Sunderland FC is commonly known as “The Mackems" and was originally nicknamed “The Rocker Men", as the club played at the Roker Park Stadium. When Sunderland moved to the Stadium of Light in 1997, fans were asked to choose a new official nickname for the team. Over half of the supporters chose the traditional name of “The Black Cats".
The link between the people of Sunderland and the Black Cats nickname stretches back over two hundred years. It was first used as a reference to the Black Cat gun battery, which stood on the River Wear in 1805. The battery was given this title as men manning the guns regularly reported hearing the meow of a mysterious black cat. Black cats began to feature in local newspaper cartoons and the name was cemented in folklore following the 1937 FA Cup final. Twelve year-old Billy Morris took a black kitten in his pocket to Wembley Stadium and many claimed it brought the team luck. Sunderland came from behind to beat Preston North End 3-1.
Sunderland moved to The Stadium of Light in 1997, as converting the Roker Park ground to an all-seated stadium would have led to a very low capacity. The new venue has a capacity of almost 50,000 spectators, making it one of the largest grounds in the country. It was also awarded elite status by UEFA. The stadium was opened by Prince Andrew, Duke of York, and it has hosted international football fixtures and concerts.
Sunderland Memorabilia
We offer an exciting range of personalised Sunderland gifts, which includes various items of Sunderland memorabilia. These presents can be kept for years to come and they are a terrific idea for fans of the Black Cats.
Our Personalised Sunderland Football Book incorporates a variety of match reports from over one hundred years. Written by journalists who were there at the time, this reproduced newspaper coverage forms a fascinating record of some of the biggest games in the club’s history.
The Football Book stretches back to 1905, when the Black Cats were in the midst of a golden era. It goes on to feature the FA Cup final of 1913, the FA Cup triumph of 1937 and the club’s fifth and sixth First Division titles, won in 1913 and 1936 respectively. The Sunderland gift also incorporates the 1973 FA Cup victory, the 1985 League Cup final and various promotion wins. Other highlights of this special Sunderland Book include the inaugural match at the Stadium of Light, European ties against Vasas and Sporting Lisbon and an exciting selection of high-scoring thrillers. These matches include the 7-0 defeat of Liverpool in 1912, the 4-4 draw with Derby County in 1933 and the 7-0 thrashing of Oxford City in 1998. We also feature an array of famous wins against rivals Newcastle United, such as the 4-2 victory in 1928 and the 2-0 victory in the 1990 play-off semi-final.
Twelve of the best match reports are featured in our Personalised Sunderland Diary and Personalised Sunderland Calendar. Highlights include the 1937 and 1973 FA Cup triumphs and the 2-7 trouncing of Birmingham City, which clinched the 1936 First Division Title. Other promotion wins are also incorporated, in addition to the fantastic 1-2 victory against Newcastle United in 2000. Both gifts can start from the month of your choice and they are a fantastic way to keep track of future events, whilst reminiscing upon former glory days.
If you would like to commemorate the current season, why not sign up to My Sunderland Football Year? This service allows you to create a customised season book, with the option of editing match reports, statistics and photographs from every Sunderland game. At the end of the season you will receive your professionally printed and bound book, with up to two hundred pictures included.
More Gift Ideas
Our Personalised Sunderland Commentaries make unusual and entertaining presents for fans of the Black Cats. A professional radio commentator will record an original commentary, based upon your choice of match highlights. Your recipient could become the hero of the Stadium of Light by saving a crucial penalty, providing a great assist or scoring a stunning last-minute goal. In doing so, they could also be nominated as Man of the Match.
Another fun gift idea is a Spoof Newspaper Headline. Recipients can become Player of the Year or an FA Cup Winner. Alternatively, they could be the Star Performer for Sunderland in a convincing win against Newcastle United, or any other team of your choice.