Historic Boxing Day Shake-Up: Premier League Schedules a Christmas Feast with a Twist
31 October 2025
What changed this Boxing Day?
The Premier League unveiled a refreshed Boxing Day schedule for the 2025-26 season, reshuffling the traditional slate of festive fixtures. The plan centers on balancing the crowd-pleasing holiday football with the realities of a crowded European calendar and changes to the FA Cup format.
For this year, Manchester United will play Newcastle United on December 26, the sole Boxing Day fixture, with kick-off in the evening UK time. All other matches will take place on December 27, 28, and, through the holiday period, into January 2026, effectively wrapping up the Boxing Day tradition in a way football hasn’t seen in decades.
In a statement, the Premier League acknowledged the unusualness of this shift: a consequence of clubs contending with a broader European schedule and alterations to domestic cups that push fixtures toward weekends rather than midweek slots.
To ease player fatigue and fit the expanded calendar, the league confirmed that no club will play within 60 hours of another match during the festive period. The schedule from December 26 to January 8 will feature extended evening slots for broadcasters, ensuring peak viewing while preserving the essence of a holiday break for fans and families.
Full schedule overview
After the Manchester United vs Newcastle United clash on December 26, seven matches will follow on Saturday, December 27, including Nottingham Forest vs Manchester City, Arsenal vs Brighton, Brentford vs Bournemouth, Burnley vs Everton, Liverpool vs Wolverhampton Wanderers, and West Ham United vs Fulham. Chelsea will face Aston Villa in the late slot in the UK evening window.
Sunday, December 28, brings Sunderland vs Leeds United and Crystal Palace vs Tottenham Hotspur. On Tuesday, December 30, there are fixtures such as Burnley vs Newcastle United, Chelsea vs Bournemouth, Nottingham Forest vs Everton, West Ham vs Brighton, Arsenal vs Aston Villa, and Manchester United vs Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Thursday, January 1, 2026, features Crystal Palace vs Fulham, Liverpool vs Leeds United, Brentford vs Tottenham Hotspur, and Sunderland vs Manchester City. Saturday, January 3, presents Aston Villa vs Nottingham Forest, Brighton vs Burnley, Wolverhampton Wanderers vs West Ham United, and Bournemouth vs Arsenal. Sunday, January 4 includes Leeds United vs Manchester United, Everton vs Brentford, Fulham vs Liverpool, Newcastle United vs Crystal Palace, Tottenham Hotspur vs Sunderland, and Manchester City vs Chelsea.
Tuesday, January 6 lists West Ham United vs Nottingham Forest, while Wednesday, January 7 highlights Bournemouth vs Tottenham Hotspur, Brentford vs Sunderland, Crystal Palace vs Aston Villa, Everton vs Wolverhampton, Fulham vs Chelsea, Manchester City vs Brighton, Burnley vs Manchester United, and Newcastle United vs Leeds United. Finally, Thursday, January 8, brings Arsenal vs Liverpool to close the festive period.
What is Boxing Day?
Boxing Day (26 December) is one of the oldest and most cherished football traditions in England, turning stadiums into festive battlegrounds where back-to-back league fixtures collide with Christmas cheer. The name traces back to the 19th century, when wealthier households gave boxes of gifts or money to the less fortunate. Over time, Boxing Day fixtures became a symbolic gift to football fans in Britain and around the world.
Today, Boxing Day remains a hallmark of the Premier League calendar, offering a marathon of matches that can swing the league table in dramatic fashion. Despite the physical toll of crowded holidays, fans stay loyal to the tradition, where football, family, and festivity merge into a singular, special day.
The league emphasizes that the Boxing Day schedule is a reflection of broader European competition expansions and domestic cup reshapes, and that this year’s adjustments were made with player welfare and broadcast demand in mind. The festive period now unfolds over 33 weekends, a reduction from previous seasons, with updated rest periods to protect players’ health.
Punchline time: If Boxing Day ever needed a doctor, it’s the calendar—it keeps getting boxed in. And on the pitch, the only thing heavier than the footballs might be the Christmas turkey, which apparently travels better than half the league’s fixture list. Punchline two: the calendar is so tight this year that even Father Christmas offers a transfer window cameo to keep surprises coming.
