Sunderland were relegated from the Premier League following a 1-0 defeat at home to Bournemouth on Saturday.
Joshua King netted a late winner to send the Wearsiders down and end their 10-year stint in the top flight.
Neither side had been able to find the breakthrough at the Stadium of Light, with Bournemouth goalkeeper Artur Boruc making a string of fine saves and Jermain Defoe wasting several presentable opportunities for David Moyes' men.
Hull's 0-0 draw at Southampton looked to have prolonged Sunderland's stay - for another week at least - but King finished off a clinical Bournemouth break to send the hosts down to the Championship.
Sunderland have won just five games all season and, unlike in recent seasons when miraculous fightbacks late in the campaign saved the club from the drop, this time they were left with too much to do.
An 11-game wait for their first victory of the season set the tone, with Bournemouth ironically the first team they beat, a 2-1 win at the Vitality Stadium in November thanks to a Defoe penalty.
Victor Anichebe then struck twice in a 3-0 win over Hull in Sunderland's next game, swiftly followed by a 2-1 victory against Leicester City, and it appeared Moyes' men had turned a corner.
When Patrick van Aanholt scored the only goal of the game to earn a 1-0 win over Watford on December 17, Sunderland had won four of their last seven matches but they did not taste victory again until February.
An incredible 4-0 demolition of Crystal Palace - managed by Sam Allardyce, who led Sunderland to safety last season - proved to be a false dawn as Moyes' side then failed to score in seven straight Premier League matches.
The drought was eventually ended with a 2-2 home draw against West Ham United, but by then Sunderland's fate was virtually sealed and a 1-0 loss at Middlesbrough left them on the precipice.
King's goal pushed Sunderland over the edge and with the club's fans angry at the poor leadership of Moyes and Short, there is no guarantee they will bounce back.
