Sunderland's Championship return attracted the highest attendance of the EFL's opening weekend - more than 9,000 more than their nearest rivals. Alex Neil's Black Cats made their return to the second tier with a 1-1 draw against Coventry City at the Stadium of Light.
And more than 40,000 fans were at the game, despite the fact that it was a Sunday lunchtime kick-off which was screened live on Sky Sports. Sunderland's attendance of 40,851 was the highest of the 36 EFl sides who hosted games on the opening weekend, with Derby County atttracting the second-highest attendance of 31,053 for their first game since relegation to League One which saw them beat Oxford United 1-0 at Pride Park.
In the Championship, Middlesbrough's televised draw against West Bromwich Albion on Saturday evening was watched by 26,567 at the Riverside - the second highest attendance in the second tier, but more than 14,000 fewer than the crowd on Wearside the following day. Boro's attendance ranked fifth overall, with two more games in League One also attracting higher gates - the 26,901 that watched Sheffield Wednesday's 3-3 draw against Portsmouth at Hillsborough, and the 26,688 that saw Ipswich Town's 1-1 draw against Bolton Wanderers at Portman Road.
READ MORE: Sunderland's Dan Ballard on the step up to the Championship and playing in front of a packed house
The highest game in League Two came at Valley Parade, where 19,368 fans watched Bradford City's goalless draw against Doncaster Rovers.
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