Construction on the Stadium Park site is scheduled to start early next year ahead of the hotel’s planned opening in summer 2015.

Consultation will be carried out with the public in the coming weeks, followed by the submission of a planning application.

Construction work is expected to create 150 new jobs.

Councillor Paul Watson, Leader of Sunderland City Council, commented, “This is a very exciting development for Sunderland and a statement of confidence in our city and its future, by arguably the most famous hotel chain in the world.

“Having such a quality hotel on Stadium Park will have a tangible economic impact on our city, and particularly its city centre.

“Stadium Park, through the Stadium of Light and the Aquatic Centre, welcomes hundreds of thousands of visitors each year, through football matches, concerts and other major events and this extra hotel provision will unlock further growth and development in the city through leisure and business tourism.”

The City Council has recently acquired the land for the development and a newly-formed company, Sunderland FC Developments, which is affiliated to Sunderland AFC, will bring the development forward.