Sunderland fell from the Premier League to League One in just two seasons.GETTY IMAGES
After Amazon's "All or Nothing" depiction of Man City's '17-18 EPL title win, Netflix is scheduled to air a series next month about League One side Sunderland, the team in the city "now more synonymous with Britain's Brexit rebellion," according to David Hellier of BLOOMBERG. During the "most disastrous period in its history," Sunderland fell from the Premier League to the third tier in two seasons, losing its American former owner nearly £200M in the process. It may be a "small part of the competition between the two online streaming services, but it reflects the escalating push into behind-the-scenes sports programming" aimed at football fans -- "even if that means grit as well as glory." While Amazon charted Man City's "surge toward a title" worth about £150M in broadcast income and prize money, Netflix's subject matter is "a fallen giant in desperate need for cash." Leo Pearlman, the British filmmaker behind the series and a Sunderland fan, said, "Following a club like Sunderland is a far truer reflection of the vast majority of sports fans' emotions and realities than that of the richest club in the world." The club, now owned by insurance entrepreneur Stewart Donald, "will get nothing directly from Netflix, but it hopes to gain commercially from the publicity and merchandising opportunities that spin off from the series" (BLOOMBERG, 11/7).
