Boxing Day Could Be Left With Just One Premier League Match

The accepted Boxing Day feast of Premier League shot whitethorn extremity up looking for illustration leftovers this winter, pinch a squeezed almanac meaning location whitethorn beryllium only 1 top-flight fixture.

Boxing Day lands connected Friday and that has near nan Premier League pinch a scheduling conundrum because of an expanded Champions League and a committedness to preserving a level for nan FA Cup.

The convention must present 33 weekends of fixtures arsenic portion of its committedness to broadcasters and is struggling to find different play to play games should astatine slightest half of nan matches, arsenic is tradition, beryllium moved to Boxing Day. On a modular Premier League play fixtures are by default played astatine 3pm connected Saturday unless they are moved to a specified broadcast slot. This season, for nan first time, each matches not played during nan Saturday 3pm blackout are being shown live, but location is only 1 broadcast slot reserved for a Friday.

Any Boxing Day fixture action is apt to beryllium controversial, moreover if location is only 1 match, fixed nan absence of astir nationalist transport. Despite a committedness to denote its TV picks for December and January by 15 October, nan convention has amended its fixture programme only until 22 December. The EFL has a afloat Boxing Day programme.

The past clip Boxing Day fell connected a Friday, successful 2014, location was a afloat information of Premier League fixtures, pinch Raheem Sterling scoring for Liverpool successful a 1-0 triumph against Burnley and Wayne Rooney signaling a brace and an assistance for Robin van Persie successful a 3-1 Manchester United triumph against Newcastle. Eight Premier League games were played connected Boxing Day past year, 5 took spot successful 2023 and 7 successful 2022.

The anticipation is that immoderate alteration to contented will beryllium reversed successful 2026, pinch Boxing Day connected a Saturday. But nan description of nan Champions League, meaning league-stage fixtures are played successful January, and a related committedness to guarantee nan FA Cup has exclusive play scheduling successful nan fourth, 5th and quarter-final rounds, are almanac obligations that will stay for nan foreseeable future.