How to watch today's Sunderland vs Portsmouth Championship game: Live stream, TV channel, and start time

Portsmouth embark on a lengthy journey to the North East this Sunday as they face Sunderland at the Stadium of Light in a crucial Championship encounter.

The hosts, chasing promotion, currently occupy fourth place in the league standings, while Pompey find themselves battling near the relegation zone in 21st position.

Sunderland endured a lacklustre conclusion to 2024, first conceding a late equalizer in a 2-2 draw away at Blackburn Rovers before suffering a narrow loss to Stoke City at the bet365 Stadium. However, the Black Cats started the new year on a brighter note, returning home to secure a hard-fought 2-1 victory against fellow promotion contenders Sheffield United.

While Sunderland have their sights firmly set on climbing into the Premier League, Portsmouth are grappling to maintain their place in the Championship and avoid an immediate drop back to League One.

Pompey responded to back-to-back away defeats in emphatic fashion, thrashing Swansea City 4-0 at Fratton Park in their New Year's Day fixture.

Here, GOAL brings you everything you need to know about how to watch, including TV channel, streaming details and more.

How to watch Sunderland vs Portsmouth online - TV channels & live streams

Sky Sports+

Watch here

The match will be shown live on Sky Sports+ in the UK. Live updates can be found here on GOAL.

How to watch anywhere with VPN

If you are abroad, you may need to use a virtual private network (VPN) in order to watch games using your usual streaming service. A VPN, such as NordVPN, allows you to establish a secure connection online when streaming. If you are not sure which VPN to use, check out GOAL's guide to the best VPNs for streaming sport.

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Sunderland vs Portsmouth kick-off time

Championship - Championship

5 Jan 2025 - 15:00

Stadium of Light

The Championship match between Sunderland and Portsmouth will be played at the Stadium of Light in Sunderland, England.

It will kick off at 8:00 pm GMT on Sunday, January 5, 2025, in the UK.

Team news & squads

Sunderland vs Portsmouth lineups

SUN

4-2-3-1

Formation

4-2-3-1

POR

1

A. Patterson

32

T. Hume

13

L. O'Nien

26

C. Mepham

42

A. Alese

7

J. Bellingham

12

E. Mayenda

10

P. Roberts

22

A. Aouchiche

4

D. Neil

18

W. Isidor

13

N. Schmid

7

M. Pack

4

R. Towler

22

Z. Swanson

3

C. Ogilvie

49

C. Lang

32

P. Lane

23

J. Murphy

8

F. Potts

21

A. Dozzell

9

C. Bishop

4-2-3-1

Portsmouth

SUN

-Line up

• 1

  A. Patterson

• 32

  T. Hume

• 13

  L. O'Nien

• 26

  C. Mepham

  90’ + 2’

• 42

  A. Alese

  46’

• 7

  J. Bellingham

• 12

  E. Mayenda

  7’

  90’ + 3’

• 10

  P. Roberts

• 22

  A. Aouchiche

  80’

• 4

  D. Neil

• 18

  W. Isidor

  7’

Substitutes

• 41

  Z. Johnson

• 15

  N. Rusyn

  90’ + 3’

• 30

  M. Aleksic

  80’

• 33

  L. Hjelde

• 47

  T. Samuel-Ogunsuyi

• 3

  D. Cirkin

  46’

• 24

  A. Connolly

• 21

  S. Moore

• 50

  H. Jones

Manager

• R. Le Bris

POR

-Line up

• 13

  N. Schmid

• 7

  M. Pack

  67’

• 4

  R. Towler

  58’

• 22

  Z. Swanson

  64’

  69’

• 3

  C. Ogilvie

• 49

  C. Lang

• 32

  P. Lane

  69’

• 23

  J. Murphy

• 8

  F. Potts

  87’

• 21

  A. Dozzell

  87’

• 9

  C. Bishop

Substitutes

• 18

  E. Soerensen

• 17

  O. Moxon

  87’

• 30

  M. Ritchie

• 31

  J. Archer

• 24

  T. Devlin

  69’

• 15

  C. Saydee

  87’

• 35

  R. Atkinson

  69’

• 16

  T. McIntyre

• 2

  J. Williams

Manager

• J. Mousinho

Sunderland team news

For Sunderland, manager Le Bris has confirmed that Dan Ballard will miss a third consecutive match as the defender continues his recovery, with the coach unwilling to take unnecessary risks.

The Black Cats are also contending with several other absentees, including Chris Rigg, Alan Browne, Salis Abdul Samed, Ahmed Abdullahi, Romaine Mundle, Ian Poveda, and Tommy Watson. On a more positive note, full-back Dennis Cirkin is in contention for a return and may feature in a back four alongside Trai Hume, Chris Mepham, and Luke O'Nien.

Portsmouth team news

Portsmouth, meanwhile, are likely to travel without Ibane Bowat, Conor Shaughnessy, Regan Poole, Mark O'Mahony, Kusini Yengi, and Harvey Blair. Australian defender Jacob Farrell is edging closer to a comeback, though it remains uncertain whether he will be fit enough to feature on Sunday.

Following a dominant display against Swansea, manager John Mousinho may opt to stick with the same lineup for their trip to the Stadium of Light.

Form

Head-to-Head Record

SUN

Last 5 matches

POR

3

Wins

0

Draws

2

Wins

• 31 Aug 2024

  Portsmouth

  1

  -

  3

  Sunderland

• 22 Jan 2022

  Sunderland

  1

  -

  0

  Portsmouth

• 2 Oct 2021

  Portsmouth

  4

  -

  0

  Sunderland

• 9 Mar 2021

  Portsmouth

  0

  -

  2

  Sunderland

• 24 Oct 2020

  Sunderland

  1

  -

  3

  Portsmouth

7

Goals scored

8

Games over 2.5 goals

3/5

Both teams scored

2/5

Standings

Useful links

• Latest betting updates
• Championship news
• Sunderland team page
• Portsmouth team page
• Football on TV in the UK