English football has its giant-killing story of the season. Port Vale produced one of the great FA Cup shocks as the League One basement side stunned Premier League Sunderland 1-0 to book their place in the quarter-finals. It was a tie that looked like a formality on paper for the Black Cats — bottom of the third tier versus top flight — but the FA Cup worked its magic once again as Ben Waine's first-half header proved to be enough for Vale. The result, delivered in front of 10,685 delirious fans at Vale Park in Stoke-on-Trent on Sunday, March 8, 2026 ET, is one for the history books.

Ben Waine: The Boyhood Newcastle Fan Who Broke Sunderland Hearts

League One strugglers Port Vale are into the quarter-finals of the FA Cup for the first time in 72 years after boyhood Newcastle fan Ben Waine scored to stun Premier League Sunderland 1-0. Five days after getting the goal that knocked out Bristol City, Waine — a New Zealand international whose mum's family hails from the north east — was at it again as his 28th-minute header gave Vale their first win over top-flight opposition since a fourth round win over Everton 30 years ago.

Waine's quick reactions proved the difference, as he rose to head home a bouncing ball in the box after Sunderland failed to clear a corner and the New Zealand international wheeled away replicating Alan Shearer's famous one-armed celebration in a nod to his own support for Newcastle United. The image of a bottom-of-League-One striker doing Alan Shearer's celebration against Sunderland at Vale Park will live long in the memory of every FA Cup supporter.

How the Goal Happened: Corner, Chaos, and a Headed Finish

From the second corner, Vale took the lead. Waine initially knocked Ethon Archer's cross down for Dajaune Brown, but when he mishit a shot, it looped back up for Waine to head home. Five minutes later Habib Diarra should have levelled but his attempted lob landed the wrong side of the post.

Sunderland nerves were laid bare when Waine forced Luke O'Nien into a long-range back-pass that left goalkeeper Melker Ellborg scrambling — the January signing who only made his debut in Tuesday's win over Leeds — before the Swede made an excellent if unorthodox save by heading over his own crossbar.

Port Vale's Defensive Masterclass: 5 Saves, Backs to the Wall

From the moment of taking the lead, Port Vale had their backs firmly to the wall — yet goalkeeper Joe Gauci and the Vale defence held firm. The stats tell the story of a siege: Port Vale had just 30.8% possession, one shot on target compared to Sunderland's six, and faced 17 shot attempts to their own nine. Gauci made five saves throughout the 90 minutes while Sunderland's Ellborg was not called upon once.

Gauci then denied Nilson Angulo's flicked header and Dan Ballard from a resulting corner as the Sunderland pressure increased in the final stages. Despite Angulo then hitting the post before being flagged offside, there was no way through — and no denying Vale a day to savour.

The Ellborg Controversy: Yellow Card, Not Red — VAR Agrees

There was a huge moment when Ellborg cleaned out George Hall as he charged towards goal. Anthony Taylor produced a yellow card and, despite the fury of the home fans, that was how it stayed after a VAR check, with a heavy touch from Hall before the tackle deemed enough to save Ellborg from a red card. Granit Xhaka came on for Sunderland in the 83rd minute as a late attacking option — but even the Swiss international could not find a way through.

The Scale of the Upset: 57 Divisions Between the Clubs

Sunderland had made only two changes from the side that beat Leeds in midweek to move up to 11th in the Premier League, but a side featuring more than £150 million ($201 million) worth of talent blew the opportunity for the two-time FA Cup winners to reach the quarter-finals for the first time since 1974.

Jon Brady's side sit rock bottom of the third tier, 11 points from safety in a 150th anniversary season that has offered little to celebrate so far — but this will go down as a famous day as they reached the last eight of the FA Cup for the first time since advancing to the semi-finals in 1954. Port Vale's FA Cup quarter-final draw will be made Monday, March 9 at 7 p.m. UK time, live on TNT Sports — and the name Port Vale FC will be very much in the hat.