Football fans are known for their chants, often witty, sometimes brutal, and always designed to get under the skin of the opposition. Few, however, have been as cutting as the chant that emerged in response to Sunderland ‘Til I Die, the Netflix documentary chronicling the club's attempt to claw its way back into the Premier League.
We've seen you crying on Netflix, opposition fans sang, twisting the knife into Sunderland supporters who had suffered the agony of watching their club tumble down the divisions. The first season of the documentary captured their unsuccessful promotion bid, ending instead with relegation to League One. The show’s raw, behind-the-scenes look at the club’s struggles made for compelling viewing, but it also turned Sunderland into an easy target for rival fans.
Yet, far from being a one-off, Sunderland ‘Til I Die was part of a growing trend. Football and sports documentaries have become some of the most gripping content available on streaming platforms. They lift the curtain on clubs, players, and even entire sporting cultures, showing audiences the human side of the game.
The Rise of Sports Documentaries
The success of Sunderland ‘Til I Die wasn’t an isolated case. The genre has exploded, with shows like Welcome to Wrexham and Amazon’s All or Nothing series drawing millions of viewers. Welcome to Wrexham, which follows Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney’s ownership of Wrexham AFC, has captivated audiences beyond traditional football fans. The Hollywood connection, combined with the underdog story of a historic but struggling Welsh club, created a narrative that was as much about community as it was about sport.
Amazon’s All or Nothing series, meanwhile, has offered an inside look at some of the world’s biggest clubs, including Manchester City, Arsenal, and Tottenham Hotspur. The show’s format provides unprecedented access, with cameras following teams through entire seasons, capturing everything from dressing room speeches to transfer negotiations.
These documentaries work because they go beyond match highlights and statistics. They show the passion, heartbreak, and relentless drive that fuel professional sport. Whether it’s a player’s struggle with injury, a manager’s tough decisions, or the tension of a title race, the emotional weight of these moments is what keeps audiences hooked.
What Makes Them So Popular?
At their best, these shows combine high-stakes drama with real-world consequences. Unlike scripted sports films, where the outcome is known or predictable, sports documentaries capture genuine uncertainty. Fans watch knowing that anything could happen—triumph or disaster, elation or heartbreak.
For supporters, seeing their club behind the scenes is a unique experience. They get to witness the personalities of players and managers beyond the standard post-match interviews. It’s one thing to watch a game and another to see the moments before kick-off, the halftime talks, and the reactions in the dressing room after a defeat.
For neutral viewers, these documentaries tell compelling human stories. Wrexham’s struggle to climb the football pyramid, Sunderland’s battle to restore their past glory, and Manchester City’s pursuit of dominance all offer narratives that are engaging even to those who wouldn’t normally watch a football match.
The success of these series also comes down to access. Football has always been covered by the media, but never at this level of intimacy. When Pep Guardiola delivers a halftime team talk in All or Nothing: Manchester City, it’s a rare insight into the mind of one of football’s greatest tacticians. When Sunderland’s boardroom discussions reveal financial struggles, it shows the precarious nature of football club management. This level of transparency makes for gripping viewing.
The Pitfalls of the Genre
However, not every club benefits from this exposure. Sunderland’s experience highlights the risks. Sunderland ‘Til I Die was initially planned as a documentary celebrating the club’s resurgence. Instead, it documented their decline, turning into a painful watch for supporters. The club itself distanced itself from later seasons, unhappy with how it was portrayed.
Similarly, All or Nothing often feels like a controlled narrative. Clubs involved in these documentaries know the power of media and often use it to shape their image. While cameras might capture moments of frustration, they rarely show true crisis points, and the involvement of clubs in the editing process can sometimes lead to a sanitised version of events.
There’s also the argument that these documentaries can add extra pressure on players and managers. When Arsenal allowed Amazon’s cameras into their club, Mikel Arteta had the added challenge of leading his squad with the knowledge that every decision he made would be scrutinised by a global audience.
The Numbers Behind the Success
Viewing figures highlight just how popular these shows have become. Welcome to Wrexham has been a global hit, with its second season averaging over a million viewers per episode on FX in the US, not counting streaming numbers from Hulu and Disney+. The All or Nothing series has consistently been one of Amazon Prime Video’s most-watched sports productions, with the Tottenham Hotspur season alone drawing millions of viewers worldwide.
Netflix’s Sunderland ‘Til I Die didn’t just capture Sunderland fans—it reached a much wider audience, resonating with football lovers who understood the emotions of success and failure. It’s no surprise, then, that the streaming giant is continuing to invest in similar projects, with its latest offering being Six Nations: Full Contact, which gives rugby fans a behind-the-scenes look at Europe’s premier rugby competition.
Beyond Football: Expanding Into Other Sports
Football may dominate the sports documentary scene, but other sports are now getting their moment in the spotlight. Drive to Survive, Netflix’s series about Formula 1, has been credited with bringing a whole new audience to the sport. By focusing on rivalries, driver personalities, and the politics behind the racing teams, it turned an already popular sport into a global phenomenon, with some teams even reporting an increase in sponsorship deals due to the show’s impact.
Amazon has also explored American football with All or Nothing: NFL, while Netflix’s Break Point aims to do for tennis what Drive to Survive did for F1. These series prove that the demand for behind-the-scenes access isn’t limited to just one sport.
Conclusion
The chant We seen you crying on Netflix may have been intended as an insult, but it also highlights the emotional power of sports documentaries. These shows have changed the way fans engage with sport, offering unprecedented access to the highs and lows of the game.
As clubs and players continue to open their doors to cameras, the appetite for these documentaries shows no sign of slowing down. They are no longer just about sport; they are about people, stories, and the raw emotions that make competition so compelling. Whether it’s a Hollywood-backed fairy tale in Wrexham, a F1 paddock filled with rivalries, or the unfiltered chaos of a dressing room after a defeat, sports documentaries have become some of the most gripping content available on streaming platforms today.
