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

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This year’s Boxing Day football line-up is pretty sparse compared to previous years

A Newcastle United fan wearing a Father Christmas outfit in the stands
Manchester United and Newcastle United are the only teams playing on Boxing Day (Image credit: Getty Images)

There is set to be just one Premier League match played on Boxing Day this year.

We’re now in December, so excitement for Christmas is building, but for football fans, it is the day after which usually provides the main event.

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

MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - DECEMBER 27: A general view outside the stadium as a Christmas Tree is seen prior to the Premier League match between Manchester United and Nottingham Forest at Old Trafford on December 27, 2022 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)

Old Trafford is hosting the only Boxing Day game in 2025 (Image credit: Getty Images)

On 26 December, there will be just one match played in England’s top tier: Manchester United vs Newcastle United, slated for an 8pm start.

An interesting fixture, no doubt, but nothing compared to last season’s eight matches, with kick-offs at 12:30pm, 3pm, 5:30pm and 8pm.

Thankfully, this year is set to be an exception rather than a new normal, with the Premier League blaming a calendar congested by expanded European tournaments, and Boxing Day falling on a Friday.

“The Premier League would like to acknowledge the circumstances that have led to a reduced number of matches on Boxing Day this season – impacting an important tradition in English football,” the Premier League said in a statement in October.

“There are now several challenges to Premier League fixture scheduling rooted in the expansion of European club competitions.

“This ultimately left the Premier League as a 33-weekend competition – fewer than previous seasons, despite being a 380-match competition since 1995.

“With fewer weekends to work with, the League is bound by how the calendar falls. The League can give an assurance that next season there will be more Premier League matches on Boxing Day – as the date falls on a Saturday.”

BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND - DECEMBER 21: Father Christmas visits the stadium ahead of during the Premier League match between Aston Villa FC and Manchester City FC at Villa Park on December 21, 2024 in Birmingham, England. (Photo by Catherine Ivill - AMA/Getty Images)

Normal Boxing Day service will resume in 2026, the Premier League have confirmed (Image credit: Getty Images)

It is, in FourFourTwo’s opinion, a relief that the league wants to protect what they term themselves an 'important tradition in English football.'

There will still be a full slate of Boxing Day action in the Championship, League One and League Two, perhaps a chance to spotlight some of those divisions, but it will not be the same without a full line-up of games from the top tier.

Football fans will only need to wait an extra day this year, however, with seven Premier League games slated for 27 December.

Isaac Stacey Stronge
Isaac Stacey Stronge
Freelance Writer

Isaac Stacey Stronge is a freelance football writer working for FourFourTwo, Manchester United and Football League World. He has been a season ticket holder at Stockport County throughout the Hatters’ meteoric rise from the National League North to League One and is a die-hard Paddy Madden fan.

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