The Premier League’s traditional Boxing Day fixture schedule will be drastically reduced in 2025, with broadcast agreements dictating that most matches be played across the ensuing weekend instead of the customary December 26 date.
Only a single match is expected to proceed on December 26. The remaining games of that round will be distributed over Saturday, Sunday, and Monday.
This significant shift is primarily due to December 26, 2025, falling on a Friday. Television broadcast contracts reportedly compel the league to prioritize weekend fixtures.
According to reports in the English press, these contracts mandate 33 weekend matchdays each season, allowing for only five midweek rounds. One of these midweek rounds for 2025 is scheduled for December 30, a Tuesday.
Many football fans have expressed surprise at the alteration to the popular tradition. The last occasion Boxing Day coincided with a Friday was in 2014, but all matches for that round were played on the actual day.
The schedule is anticipated to revert to a full Boxing Day slate in 2026, when December 26 will fall on a Saturday.