Whether or not there is any football on Christmas Day, a break from a century-old Boxing Day tradition in Premier League is something else. Normally, there is a full slate of English top tier football action on December 26, but for 2025/26 there is just one - Manchester United vs Newcastle United.
Amid all the fixtures from across various competitions on TV on Boxing Day, and while all other Premier League games from Matchweek 18 are instead spread across Saturday (December 27) and Sunday (December 28), GOAL looks at why it was necessary...
Why only one Premier League game on Boxing Day?
The Premier League intentionally scheduled just one match on December 26 — Manchester United vs Newcastle — due to wider fixture congestion and broadcast contract requirements.
To put it into context, with December 26 falling on a Friday and the league committed to 33 weekends of matches, plus the expanded European season, the only broadcast slot available that day went to the United–Newcastle match.
As a result, this season, only one Premier League match was scheduled for December 26.
Football on Boxing Day (Fri, Dec 26, 2025)
| Kick-off (UK time) | Match | Competition | TV channel / stream |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12:30 pm | Birmingham City vs Derby County | Championship | Sky Sports / Sky Sports+ |
| 1 pm | Millwall vs Ipswich Town | Championship | Sky Sports / Sky Sports+ |
| 3 pm | Coventry City vs Swansea City | Championship | Sky Sports / Sky Sports+ |
| 3 pm | Leicester City vs Watford | Championship | Sky Sports / Sky Sports+ |
| 3 pm | Middlesbrough vs Blackburn Rovers | Championship | Sky Sports / Sky Sports+ |
| 3 pm | Norwich City vs Charlton Athletic | Championship | Sky Sports / Sky Sports+ |
| 3 pm | Oxford United vs Southampton | Championship | Sky Sports / Sky Sports+ |
| 3 pm | Portsmouth vs QPR | Championship | Sky Sports / Sky Sports+ |
| 3 pm | Sheffield Wednesday vs Hull City | Championship | Sky Sports / Sky Sports+ |
| 3 pm | Stoke City vs Preston | Championship | Sky Sports / Sky Sports+ |
| 3 pm | West Brom vs Bristol City | Championship | Sky Sports / Sky Sports+ |
| 3 pm | Wimbledon vs Stevenage | League One | Sky Sports / Sky Sports+ |
| 3 pm | Barnsley vs Mansfield Town | League One | Sky Sports / Sky Sports+ |
| 3 pm | Blackpool vs Doncaster Rovers | League One | Sky Sports / Sky Sports+ |
| 3 pm | Bolton Wanderers vs Rotherham | League One | Sky Sports / Sky Sports+ |
| 3 pm | Bradford City vs Wigan Athletic | League One | Sky Sports / Sky Sports+ |
| 3 pm | Burton Albion vs Northampton Town | League One | Sky Sports / Sky Sports+ |
| 3 pm | Cardiff City vs Exeter City | League One | Sky Sports / Sky Sports+ |
| 3 pm | Huddersfield Town vs Port Vale | League One | Sky Sports / Sky Sports+ |
| 3 pm | Luton Town vs Wycombe Wanderers | League One | Sky Sports / Sky Sports+ |
| 3 pm | Peterborough United vs Leyton Orient | League One | Sky Sports / Sky Sports+ |
| 3 pm | Plymouth Argyle vs Reading | League One | Sky Sports / Sky Sports+ |
| 3 pm | Stockport County vs Lincoln City | League One | Sky Sports / Sky Sports+ |
| 3 pm | Accrington Stanley vs Barrow | League Two | Sky Sports / Sky Sports+ |
| 3 pm | Bristol Rovers vs Bromley | League Two | Sky Sports / Sky Sports+ |
| 3 pm | Cheltenham Town vs Shrewsbury Town | League Two | Sky Sports / Sky Sports+ |
| 3 pm | Chesterfield vs Notts County | League Two | Sky Sports / Sky Sports+ |
| 3 pm | Crawley Town vs Colchester United | League Two | Sky Sports / Sky Sports+ |
| 3 pm | Gillingham vs Cambridge United | League Two | Sky Sports / Sky Sports+ |
| 3 pm | Grimsby Town vs Oldham Athletic | League Two | Sky Sports / Sky Sports+ |
| 3 pm | MK Dons vs Swindon Town | League Two | Sky Sports / Sky Sports+ |
| 3 pm | Newport County vs Barnet | League Two | Sky Sports / Sky Sports+ |
| 3 pm | Salford City vs Harrogate Town | League Two | Sky Sports / Sky Sports+ |
| 3 pm | Tranmere Rovers vs Fleetwood Town | League Two | Sky Sports / Sky Sports+ |
| 3 pm | Walsall vs Crewe Alexandra | League Two | Sky Sports / Sky Sports+ |
| 5:30 pm | Wrexham vs Sheffield United | Championship | Sky Sports / Sky Sports+ |
| 8 pm | Man Utd vs Newcastle United | Premier League | Sky Sports / NOW TV |
Will Premier League games on Boxing Day return?
With just the United-Newcastle game on December 26 this season, Premier League has acknowledged this impacts a long-standing Boxing Day tradition in English football. However, the league has assured that when the date falls on a weekend in future seasons, more Boxing Day matches will return. So next season there will be more Premier League matches on Boxing Day – as the date falls on a Saturday.