Régis Le Bris – Sunderland’s Rare Beacon of Stability

NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE, ENGLAND - MARCH 22: Sunderland manager Regis Le Bris before the Premier League match between Newcastle United and Sunderland at St James' Park on March 22, 2026 in Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom. (Photo by Lee Parker - CameraSport via Getty Images) | CameraSport via Getty Images Régis Le Bris is fast approaching a second full season in charge at Sunderland, a feat that only three others have reached in the last 30 years – Steve Bruce, Mick McCarthy, and Peter Reid. This stat is amazing in itself and stands out even more when you look at the high turnover of managers/head coaches we’ve seen during these tenures.

As RLB looks set to become part of this exclusive club, it’s amazing to think about how, in two periods of his time on Wearside, there have been calls for him to be sacked. With a play-off place secured and our chances of an automatic promotion spot gone by around this time a year ago, RLB shifted tactics and eased up in games, which resulted in a five-game losing streak heading into the play-offs. As nervous as this was, several people were calling for him to be replaced before the end of the season, keen to undo months of hard work.

The club was never going to make such a stupid move, but it certainly made for some baffling reading on the often ridiculous world of SAFC social media. In hindsight, the club bided its time, prepared for a two-legged play-off against a side we hadn’t beaten away from home in over 40 years and – with a stroke of luck – got the job done and booked our place at Wembley. Fast forward almost 12 months, and after a sticky period at the start of 2026, talk was emerging of how ‘RLB has taken us as far as he can’.

For the first time all season, we lost consecutive games, and two of these were against Arsenal and Liverpool. Is it arrogance? Is it getting carried away after a fantastic season up to that point?