Sunderland host AZ Alkmaar at the Stadium of Light this week in their first taste of continental football for 53 years. As of 4 October 2026, the build up to kick off has sharpened just how long Wearside has waited for a night like this.
The visit opens Sunderland’s Europa League group campaign against a Dutch side in form. It is a fixture with no shared history, no past meetings and no script to follow. That alone makes it worth the wait.
Sunderland and AZ Alkmaar meet
Sunderland host AZ Alkmaar in their opening Europa League group fixture, and the visitors arrive with momentum. AZ Alkmaar have won five and drawn one of their opening six league matches this season, a record that marks them as a serious early test.
There is nothing in the record books to go on. Sunderland and AZ Alkmaar have no competitive history against each other, so this is new ground for both clubs as well as for the supporters filling the ground. Our coverage from the Europa League preview set out much of the early detail before the squad’s build up began in earnest.
Sunderland’s road back to Europe
The route into Europe was earned on the pitch, not handed down. Sunderland qualified by finishing seventh in the Premier League last season and by beating Chelsea at the Stadium of Light four months ago, a result that still sits among the club’s best in recent memory.
Régis Le Bris has been clear about what that achievement means to him and his squad. “I’m proud but we’ve earned it, the players worked very hard last season,” he said. He added: “Now we have a good opportunity and it’s important to go all in.”
Sunderland’s last continental night at Roker Park
The last time Sunderland played in Europe, Roker Park was the stage. That was 53 years ago, when the club faced Vasas of Budapest in the European Cup Winners’ Cup in 1973.
The club doubled ticket prices that year to pay for an upgrade to Roker Park’s floodlights, a cost that supporters felt directly at the turnstiles. Even the visit of Vasas did not sell out Roker Park, a reminder that European nights were not always the guaranteed sell outs they can be today.
What Sunderland’s return to Europe means
For Le Bris, the challenge now is balancing two competitions without losing focus on either. “We want to be strong in both the Premier League and Europe,” he said, a line that frames how the club intends to approach the season ahead.
He has also spoken about the mood inside the squad. “The players are looking forward to facing AZ; they’re excited. They want to be involved in this competition,” Le Bris said. Granit Xhaka offered his own take on what to expect from the crowd: “The stadium will be on fire.”
What happens next
Kick off at the Stadium of Light brings 53 years of waiting to an end. The return to Europe is also being felt away from the pitch: interest in European flights has grown among travelling supporters ahead of the fixture.
Le Bris will also have to manage a growing fixture list. His approach to squad rotation, already a talking point domestically, is likely to stay relevant as European and Premier League weeks start to overlap. For now, though, the focus is simple: Sunderland host AZ Alkmaar, and a long absence from this stage is finally over.
