(Credit: Manh Tung - Breaking Media/Reform Party)

James Murray

Fri 3 April 2026 12:00, UK

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Sunderland are expected to face fan protests if Nigel Farage makes an appearance at the Stadium of Light. 

That is according to former Manchester City financial adviser Stefan Borson, who exclusively told Football Insider the Premier League side are likely to experience a similar reaction to Ipswich Town if the visit goes ahead. 

ITV News reported on 27 March Sunderland director Juan Sartori, who owns a 34 per cent stake in the club, extended an invitation to Farage to visit the Stadium of Light. 

The Reform Party leader was hoping to make an appearance at the stadium last week, but the meeting wasn’t formally arranged.

Farage is still keen to attend a Black Cats home fixture over the coming weeks. 

How Sunderland fans will respond to Nigel Farage invite

Ipswich faced a backlash after photos emerged online of Farage at Portman Road last week, having reportedly received an invitation from the Championship club. 

Mark Ashton, the Tractor Boys’ chairman and chief executive, later apologised for how the situation involving the Clacton MP had been handled. 

Speaking exclusively to Football Insider, Borson discussed the potential impact on Sunderland if Farage makes an appearance at the Stadium of Light.

“I suspect it’s more a well-organised fan protest as opposed to something that has proper commercial impact,” said Borson.

“We are talking about somebody who, whether we like it or not, may be the next prime minister, so it’s pretty unlikely that it’s got a commercial impact.

“It’s similar to the De Zerbi situation and fan involvement in that because of his comments that he made in relation to Mason Greenwood. There’s a section of the Spurs fans who are very annoyed about the appointment. You will always have some groups of supporters who are not happy with certain actions taken by the club.

“It might be something human rights related for Newcastle or Manchester City, or it could be something the manager said. Or you might bring somebody in from the outside who’s a controversial character.” 

Why Ipswich made ‘surprising’ response to Farage backlash

Borson admitted he was “surprised” by Ipswich’s response to the backlash as Sunderland now consider entertaining Farage at the Stadium of Light.

“This one to me is a bit odd in that Farage is, like it or not, a politician in this country,” said Borson.

“He’s an MP. He may well be prime minister, and it was hardly a major endorsement by Ipswich. He was visiting the club, and it seemed to be a bit of an overreaction from Ipswich’s ownership to me. 

“They are a commercial operation. They need to make money, and I’m not sure why that’s such a difficult thing for the fans to accept. But I’m sure the same thing will happen at Sunderland. I’m sure it’s a similar sort of issue.

“If they go ahead with it, I’m sure they’ll have protests. Maybe quite a few people won’t care. But I was surprised by the approach from the Ipswich management team. It seemed a bit over the top.”