Sunderland AFC is a professional football club based in Sunderland, England, competing in the Premier League.
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Sunderland AFC has launched a credible renewable energy transition programme with named targets (net zero 2040, energy self-sufficiency 2028) but publishes no emissions data, waste figures, or water consumption. The club's sustainability effort is strategy-led and senior-managed, yet lacks the baseline measurements and third-party verification needed to prove actual progress.
Sunderland AFC scores 26/100 (Significant gaps) on SINK's independent climate assessment, scored from public data only. Fees pay for the review, never the result. Last verified August 2026.
That places Sunderland AFC joint 710th of 847 companies scored, and 18th of 22 in Professional Sports Clubs.
Where Sunderland AFC sits among professional sports clubs peers.
Among the 22 major professional sports clubs brands we've scored, Sunderland AFC sits 18th of 22.
Its three lowest-scoring questions, and what the evidence didn't show.
No Scope 1 or Scope 2 emissions figures published in any sustainability report or Companies House filing.
No Scope 3 supply chain emissions quantified or reported.
No year-on-year emissions trajectory available.
A score changes when the evidence does. We use new published evidence at the next rescore. Evidence that isn't public can count through an evidence review.
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Get in touch →Strongest on Controversies & Red Flags and Energy Source (7/10, 4/10). Weakest on Carbon Footprint — Operations and Carbon Footprint — Supply Chain (2/10, 2/10).
The 3 companies in the sector scoring nearest above Sunderland AFC.
Everton has no published emissions data despite mandatory UK disclosure requirements, making baseline and trajectory assessment impossible.
See the breakdown →Nottingham Forest disclosed emissions for the first time in 2022/23, meeting UK SECR minimums but without verification or targets.
See the breakdown →Fulham FC has renewable energy in place and zero waste to landfill, but lacks public emissions data despite legal SECR obligations.
See the breakdown →The formula and all 11 sources.
Same ten questions for every company. No private weighting.
SINK = (0.3 × Base + 0.7 × Performance) × Scale11 sources used in this assessment. All publicly available. Each row shows which of the ten questions it informed.
“Club has set ambitious sustainability targets, aiming to be energy self-sufficient from renewable sources by 2028”
“Sunderland AFC has unveiled a new sustainability strategy to reduce its impact on the environment”
“Sunderland's strategy is in line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals”
“generating up to 40 MW of renewable energy that will power 12,000 homes”
“club said the application was a step towards 'becoming one of the first net zero clubs in the United Kingdom'”
“club said it would remove more than 1,700 panels from the farm and put a waterbody in place”
“biodiversity enhancements would include improvements to hedgerows, to 'reinstating biodiverse habita'”
“'We're not interested in greenwashing, we wanted to make that clear from the start'”
“Ready Eco sustainability strategy, which underlines the aspiration to become energy-sufficient from renewable sources by 2028 and achieving net zero by 2040”
“As part of its Ready Eco strategy, Sunderland aims to be energy-sufficient by 2028 and reach net zero by 2040”
“Average home league attendance: 46,824”
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Sunderland AFC is a professional football club based in Sunderland, England, competing in the Premier League. Founded in 1879, the club operates the Stadium of Light (49,000 capacity), an academy training facility, and associated retail operations. Mid-sized operator by turnover (£40.3m in 2024-25) with material energy, water, and waste footprints.
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