The Premier League has announced the start and end dates for the 2026-27 season.
The first round of fixtures will take place across the weekend of 22 August 2026 – a week later than previous seasons.
The later start allows rest time for players – 89 clear days from the end of this season, and 33 days from the 2026 World Cup final.
The Premier League said the delay was a “priority” for player welfare in an “increasingly congested global football calendar”.
The final matches of the season will be played on Sunday, 30 May 2027, with all fixtures kicking off simultaneously as usual.
The season will end a week before the 2027 Champions League final, which will be on Saturday, 5 June.
There will be 33 weekend and five midweek fixtures – the same as the current season.
For the festive period, the Premier League have said no two match rounds will take place within 60 hours.
It has not been confirmed if there will be any fixtures on 24 December 2026.
However, as Boxing Day falls on a Saturday, the Premier League has said there will be more matches scheduled than this season, when there is only one.
This article is the latest from BBC Sport’s Ask Me Anything team.
