Why there is only one Premier League match on Boxing Day this year

Updated Dec. 26, 2025 9:50 a.m. ET

Associated Press

MANCHESTER, England (AP) — It's traditionally one of the most anticipated days of the English soccer calendar. But this year there is a notable lack of Premier League games on Boxing Day, with only one match scheduled: Manchester United vs. Newcastle.

Instead there will be seven games on Saturday and the round of fixtures will be completed with two more on Sunday.

The Premier League said in October that the reason for a reduced Boxing Day schedule was because of the growing pressure expanded European club competitions are having on England's top flight.

A new-look Champions League format was introduced last year. It meant an expansion European club soccer's top tournament from 32 teams to 36, with more games in a league format played through to January and a playoff phase added in February.

In addition to the second-tier Europa League and third-tier Conference League, the Premier League says it has been presented with “several challenges” to fixture scheduling. It said the reduction in Boxing Day games had impacted an “important tradition in English football.”

Last year there were eight games on Boxing Day.

With Boxing Day falling on a Friday and the Premier League ensuring time between games to allow sufficient rest for players over the festive period, games have been spread across Dec. 26-28.

“With fewer weekends to work with, the league is bound by how the calendar falls,” the Premier League said.

It has also given assurance more games would be played on Boxing Day in 2026 because it falls on a Saturday.