TOP TEDDINGTON LAWYER MOURNS THE END OF FESTIVE FOOTBALL TRADITION
For devoted fans of the Premier League, the 25 day wait between the previous league finishing and the announcement of the fixtures for the forthcoming season are announced, can seem an age.
Fixture reveal day comes around with great anticipation as the countdown to the new season officially starts, and plans begin to be made for enticing home games and long trips away.
But this year the fixtures have come with an unexpected, unwelcome (by most) twist.
It seems bizarre in the middle of the English summer that fans are getting irate about a day in the middle of winter, but irate they are with no confirmed matches scheduled for Boxing Day.
Football enthusiasts are used to a full day of football fixtures on Boxing Day, with staggered kick-offs to enable those so inclined to sit and watch the telly for 10+ hours.
The sight of people in Santa suits at football grounds is one of the most enduring images of Xmas, and it is a long-standing tradition.
In the golden age of football at the turn of the 20th century and through to the 1950s, football was traditionally played on Christmas Day, the one day of the year when most people were not at work.
As the sport became more professional, and Christmas Day became more of a family day of celebration, the football fixtures moved to Boxing Day, with the last round of Christmas Day fixtures being played in 1957.
Since then, Boxing Day football has been the key feature of the season’s schedule, until next season.
The traditional holiday programme of a full fixture list on 26 December was missing when the top flight’s list was revealed.
The Premier League has announced that 27th December fixtures can be brought forward to Boxing Day to be shown on television, but the traditional full list of fixtures is no more, to the bitter disappointment of some fans.
For others, not having to negotiate limited public transport options on the bank holiday will be a relief, but the underlying feeling seems to be that yet another important cornerstone of what makes English Football special has been eroded.
The reason for the move goes back to a deal that was struck between the Football Association (FA) and the Premier League.
In exchange for the FA controversially agreeing to drop FA Cup replays, the Premier League agreed to restore the FA Cup fifth round to a blank weekend, rather than being played midweek, as well as agreeing not to schedule Premier League fixtures on the same weekend as the FA Cup sixth round.
The Premier League comprises a 38-game season, with 33 of those matches being at the weekend.
In 2025/26, the only way to get 33 weekends into the season is for 27 December to be one of the regular match day fixtures – hence the decision to forego the Boxing Day fixtures.
However, football fans who want to extricate themselves from family affairs on Boxing Day can take some comfort from the fact that the English Football League (EFL) will have a full programme across its three leagues with every match being streamed.
What of the actual fixtures?
Current champions Liverpool kick off the new season with a Friday night game at home against Bournemouth on 15 August.
Potential title contenders Arsenal face a challenging start, with an away trip to Manchester United on the opening weekend, followed by a trip to Liverpool in the third round and welcoming Manchester City to the Emirates in the fifth round of matches – a list of fixtures that will certainly reveal the strength of Arsenal’s challenge next year.
Under fire Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim also faces a tough start, facing three of last season’s top four in their first five fixtures – the results from these may be make or break for the young Portuguese manager.
Sport is always a delicate balance between tradition and innovation.
Judging by the outpouring of anger from many fans about ‘their’ Boxing Day fixture, this move has not gone down well, but I imagine that Premier League players themselves may be looking forward to being able to indulge themselves a little more than usual this Christmas.
David Little is a Partner at Bishop & Sewell in our expert Sports Law and Corporate & Commercial teams