At 9am on Wednesday morning the 2017-18 Sky Bet Championship fixtures will be released – and you can be the first to find out who Sunderland will face and when by visiting safc.com.
- Get the lowdown on pre-season opponents Scunthorpe United
- Find out the latest ticket news ahead of trips to Bury and Hibernian
- Paul Bracewell departed the club last week
The Black Cats enter the competition following a ten-year stay in the Premier League, but they do so with a rich record having won the second-tier title on three occasions during their time at the Stadium of Light.
The 2017-18 campaign will start on Saturday 5 August and conclude on Sunday 5 May 2018, with the Sky Bet EFL Play-Offs scheduled to take place on the weekend of 26-28 May 2018.
The Black Cats will take on the likes of Middlesbrough, Leeds United and Aston Villa, as well as Sheffield United, Bolton Wanderers and Millwall who earned promotion to the second tier last year.
A testing festive schedule will see a full programme of fixtures take place on Saturday 23 December, Boxing Day, Saturday 30 December and Monday 1 January 2018.
To find out Sunderland’s full 2017-18 Championship schedule on Wednesday 21 June, stay tuned to safc.com and follow @SunderlandAFC on Twitter.
Key Dates
Sky Bet EFL fixtures announced: 21st June 2017
Sky Bet EFL season starts: weekend of 5th August 2017
Carabao Cup starts: week commencing 7th August 2017
Checkatrade Trophy starts: week commencing 28th August 2017
Sky Bet EFL regular season ends: weekend of 5th May 2018
Sky Bet EFL Play-Off Finals: weekend of 26th-28th May 2018
