D. Ballard · career
Daniel George Ballard
Center Back · Sunderland · season-by-season, by competition, and every match.
Career report
Below his 2023/24 peak but holding a solid level — the platform for a return is there.
Peak: 2023/24Holding levelBreakout: 2025/26Stepped up 2021/22Injury-hit 2025/26
The record covers 7 seasons (2020/21–2025/26) across 3 clubs — 174 appearances with 14 goal contributions from defence.
His best campaign on record is 2023/24 at Sunderland — Season rating 39, 3 goals and 0 assists in 43 games. 2025/26 was the leap — Season rating up 19 points at Sunderland. Output has held steady across his last 3 full seasons (39 → 33). The gap to his peak is 6 Season points.
2025/26 was disrupted — 7 fixtures missed through injury or absence. Made the jump to a higher division in 2021/22 (Championship) and kept playing — 31 games that season.
By season
| Season | Club | Apps | G | A | Rating | Season |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026/27 | Sunderland | 1 | 0 | 0 | 75 | 33 |
| 2025/26 | Sunderland | 29 | 2 | 0 | 75 | 33 |
| 2024/25 | Sunderland | 23 | 3 | 1 | 63 | 14 |
| 2024/25 | Sunderland U21 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | — |
| 2023/24 | Sunderland | 43 | 3 | 0 | 71 | 39 |
| 2022/23 | Sunderland | 19 | 0 | 1 | 64 | 21 |
| 2022/23 | Sunderland U21 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | — |
| 2021/22 | MillwallLoan | 31 | 1 | 0 | 70 | 38 |
| 2020/21 | BlackpoolLoan | 28 | 2 | 1 | 50 | 36 |
| 2020/21 | Arsenal U23 | 2 | 0 | 0 | — | — |
| 2019/20 | Arsenal U23 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | — |
| 2019/20 | Swindon Town | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | — |
| 2018/19 | Arsenal U21 | 3 | 0 | 0 | — | — |
| 2018/19 | Arsenal U23 | 18 | 1 | 0 | — | — |
| 2017/18 | Arsenal U23 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — |
| 2017/18 | Arsenal U18 | 12 | 2 | 0 | — | — |
| 2016/17 | Arsenal U18 | 15 | 1 | 0 | — | — |
International
| Side | Season | Competition | Apps | G |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Northern Ireland | 2025/26 | Friendlies | 2 | 0 |
| 2024/25 | Friendlies | 3 | 1 | |
| 2024/25 | UEFA Nations League | 4 | 2 | |
| 2024/25 | World Cup - Qualification Europe | 3 | 0 | |
| 2023/24 | Euro Championship - Qualification | 5 | 0 | |
| 2022/23 | UEFA Nations League | 3 | 1 | |
| 2022/23 | Friendlies | 1 | 0 | |
| 2021/22 | Friendlies | 2 | 0 | |
| 2020/21 | World Cup - Qualification Europe | 5 | 1 | |
| 2020/21 | UEFA Nations League | 5 | 0 | |
| Northern Ireland U21 | 2019/20 | UEFA U21 Championship | 3 | 1 |
| Northern Ireland U19 | 2018/19 | UEFA U19 Championship | 2 | 0 |
Honours
FA Cup×2Premier League 2×2Premier League 2×3FA Youth Cup×2Premier League International Cup×2U18 Premier League×2
By competition
| Competition | Apps | Min | G | A | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Premier League | 29 | 2148 | 2 | 0 | 6.8 |
| Friendliesat Northern Ireland | 2 | 180 | 0 | 0 | 7.0 |
| FA Cup | 2 | 139 | 0 | 0 | 6.3 |
Schedule · 2025/26
31 played· 2287 min, 2g 0a
| Date | Competition | Opponent | Res | Status | Min | G | A | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 16 | Premier League | H West Ham | 3-0 | Played | 90 | 1 | 9.2 | |
| Aug 23 | Premier League | A Burnley | 0-2 | Played | 9 | 7.0 | ||
| Sep 21 | Premier League | H Aston Villa | 1-1 | Played | 53 | 6.2 | ||
| Sep 27 | Premier League | A Nottingham Forest | 1-0 | Played | 15 | 6.9 | ||
| Oct 4 | Premier League | A Manchester United | 0-2 | Played | 53 | 7.7 | ||
| Oct 18 | Premier League | H Wolves | 2-0 | Played | 90 | 7.2 | ||
| Oct 25 | Premier League | A Chelsea | 2-1 | Played | 90 | 6.6 | ||
| Nov 3 | Premier League | H Everton | 1-1 | Played | 90 | 6.9 | ||
| Nov 8 | Premier League | H Arsenal | 2-2 | Played | 90 | 1 | 7.6 | |
| Nov 22 | Premier League | A Fulham | 0-1 | Played | 90 | 6.6 | ||
| Nov 29 | Premier League | H Bournemouth | 3-2 | Played | 90 | 7.0 | ||
| Dec 3 | Premier League | A Liverpool | 1-1 | Played | 90 | 6.7 | ||
| Dec 6 | Premier League | A Manchester City | 0-3 | Played | 90 | 6.0 | ||
| Dec 14 | Premier League | H Newcastle | 1-0 | Played | 90 | 7.3 | ||
| Dec 20 | Premier League | A Brighton | 0-0 | Played | 90 | 8.0 | ||
| Jan 4 | Premier League | A Tottenham | 1-1 | Played | 24 | 6.3 | ||
| Jan 7 | Premier League | A Brentford | 0-3 | Played | 79 | 6.5 | ||
| Jan 10 | FA Cup | A Everton | 1-1 | Played | 49 | 6.3 | ||
| Jan 17 | Premier League | H Crystal Palace | 2-1 | Played | 90 | 7.0 | ||
| Jan 24 | Premier League | A West Ham | 1-3 | Played | 90 | 6.5 | ||
| Feb 2 | Premier League | H Burnley | 3-0 | Played | 90 | 7.5 | ||
| Feb 7 | Premier League | A Arsenal | 0-3 | Played | 90 | 5.9 | ||
| Feb 11 | Premier League | H Liverpool | 0-1 | Played | 90 | 6.7 | ||
| Feb 22 | Premier League | H Fulham | 1-3 | Played | 90 | 6.9 | ||
| Feb 28 | Premier League | A Bournemouth | 1-1 | Played | 90 | 7.2 | ||
| Mar 3 | Premier League | A Leeds | 1-0 | Played | 90 | 6.9 | ||
| Mar 8 | FA Cup | A Port Vale | 0-1 | Played | 90 | 6.3 | ||
| Mar 14 | Premier League | H Brighton | 0-1 | Played | 64 | 6.7 | ||
| Apr 19 | Premier League | A Aston Villa | 3-4 | Played | 27 | 7.3 | ||
| Apr 24 | Premier League | H Nottingham Forest | 0-5 | Played | 90 | 5.6 | ||
| May 2 | Premier League | A Wolves | 1-1 | Played | 24 | 4.2 |