We have barely said farewell to the 2024-25 Premier League season, but the fixtures for next season have been released, and the countdown to the opening weekend of the season is well and truly on.
The summer transfer window is now in full swing, and several Premier League clubs have already made multiple signings. Next up, pre-season friendlies.
So, when will the 2025/26 Premier League season start? Find that out and learn all about other key dates in our article below.
Premier League key dates 2025/26
Opening weekend of the season
The opening weekend of fixtures will have four days of fixtures. These will take place from Friday, 15 August to Monday, 18 August.
International breaks
The 2025/26 international breaks are as follows:
- 1 – 9 September: All
- 6 – 14 October: All
- 10 – 18 November: All
- 21 Dec – 18 Jan: Africa Cup of Nations
- 23- 31 March: All
Key derby matches
Notable derby matches during the 2025/26 season include:
- Manchester City vs Manchester United – 13/09/2025
- Liverpool vs Everton – 20/09/2025
- Arsenal vs Tottenham – 22/11/2025
- Sunderland vs Newcastle United – 13/12/2025
- Manchester United vs Manchester City – 17/01/2026
- Tottenham vs Arsenal – 21/02/2026
- Newcastle United vs Sunderland – 21/03/2026
- Everton vs Liverpool – 18/04/2026
Check out our extensive list of Premier League derbies in 2025/26.
Potential top-of-the-table clashes
Some potential top-of-the-table clashes this season include:
- Liverpool vs Arsenal – 30/08/2025
- Arsenal vs Manchester City – 20/09/2025
- Manchester City vs Liverpool – 08/11/2025
- Arsenal vs Liverpool – 07/01/2026
- Liverpool vs Manchester City – 07/02/2026
- Manchester City vs Arsenal – 18/04/2026
Festive fixtures
Controversially, there are currently no Premier League matches set to be played on Boxing Day, which hasn't gone down well with football fans. There is a full set of fixtures on 27 December, and there is a chance that TV broadcasters could move some of these matches to Boxing Day.
Final weekend of the season
How are Premier League fixtures decided?
According to the Premier League, it can take up to six months to put together the fixture schedule, with the entire process managed by a multinational IT company, Atos.
There are many factors that go into creating a Premier League schedule, from considering key dates from the football calendar as a whole to taking into account local issues, such as policing capacity and geographical proximity.
Once all the key factors are taken into account, the system randomly generates a set of fixtures, which is then manually verified by Atos, the Premier League, and the English Football League. The EFL is a separate entity and thus has a different set of key dates, but they still have to coordinate with the Premier League to avoid any date clashes.
When is the 2025 summer transfer window?
The summer transfer window for Premier League clubs opened on 1 June and will close on 1 September. There was a brief period between 10 and 16 June when the window was shut, due to complications around the Club World Cup.