The League One side opted to show Parkinson and his assistant Steve Parkin the door on Sunday after concluding he was not the right man to mount a promotion challenge.
Parkinson’s last game in charge was a 1-1 draw away at Fleetwood Town and the result meant that Sunderland have now gone five games without a win, across all competitions.
The club have now kicked off the search for his successor and will have a host of options, with Gus Poyet leading the betting, followed by Danny Cowley and Paul Cook.
It is claimed that the Stadium of Light outfit have already received dozens of applications for the manager’s post, which they will start to go through.
No appointment is likely to be made before Tuesday night’s meeting with Burton Albion though.
Sunderland will be led against the Brewers by caretaker boss Andrew Taylor, who will hope to guide the side to a morale-boosting victory in the League One clash.
Following the Burton game, Sunderland have another home match on the agenda with the visit of Wigan Athletic and it remains to be seen if they will have made an appointment by the time the Latics arrive at the Stadium of Light.
