Sunderland are building an academy in Tanzania.

Sunderland's chief executive, Margaret Byrne, has hailed the club's partnership with Tanzania as a big step forward.

The Black Cats have partnered with global energy giants Symbion Power to build a ground-breaking new football academy in the Tanzanian capital, Dar es Salaam.

"The first stage involves us working with Symbion Power to build a community-type academy, allowing many children to come and enjoy playing the game," Byrne explained.

"They will be able to play under floodlights and realise their dream of playing on football pitches.

"The second stage involves us working together and Symbion and possibly other conglomerates to build an elite academy.

"We will assist with the various models we use here at the Academy of Light and also with the knowledge we've gained from the EPPP (Elite Player Performance Plan) project too.

"This is a very proud moment for everyone; to be able to lift all of our knowledge and bring it over to Dar Es Salaam is very special."