When it starts

The 2026/27 Premier League season begins on Friday 21 August 2026, when champions Arsenal host newly promoted Coventry City at the Emirates Stadium. Kick-off is 20:00 BST, live on Sky Sports.

The season ends on Sunday 30 May 2027, when all ten final-round fixtures kick off simultaneously, as they do every year.

Both dates are later than a normal Premier League season, and there is a specific reason for that.

Why the season starts so late this year

The 2026 World Cup pushed everything back. The Premier League's opening match falls 34 days after the World Cup final in the United States.

That compression shows up in the structure of the season rather than in the number of games. There are still 380 matches and 38 rounds, but they are arranged as 33 weekend rounds and five midweek rounds. The Premier League has said the schedule is designed to avoid clashes with UEFA competition dates wherever possible.

The fixture list itself was released on 19 June 2026.

The full opening round

The first match round is spread across four days, from Friday 21 to Monday 24 August. All times BST.

Friday 21 August — Arsenal v Coventry City, 20:00, Sky Sports.

Saturday 22 August — Hull City v Manchester United, 12:30, TNT Sports. Everton v Crystal Palace, 15:00. Ipswich Town v Sunderland, 15:00. Nottingham Forest v Leeds United, 15:00. Brentford v Tottenham Hotspur, 17:30, Sky Sports.

Sunday 23 August — Brighton & Hove Albion v Aston Villa, 14:00, Sky Sports. Manchester City v AFC Bournemouth, 14:00, Sky Sports. Newcastle United v Liverpool, 16:30, Sky Sports.

Monday 24 August — Fulham v Chelsea, 20:00, Sky Sports.

Kick-off times later in the season are routinely moved for television and for clubs' progress in European and domestic cups, so treat anything beyond the opening rounds as provisional until it is confirmed.

Who came up, who went down

Three clubs were promoted from the Championship. Coventry City went up as champions under Frank Lampard, and their opening fixture at Arsenal is their first top-flight match in 25 years. Ipswich Town took the second automatic place. Hull City completed the line-up by winning the play-off final against Middlesbrough.

They replace West Ham United, Burnley and Wolverhampton Wanderers, all relegated at the end of 2025/26.

The defending champions are Arsenal, who won their first Premier League title since 2004 under Mikel Arteta.

The managers who changed

Three of the biggest jobs in the league changed hands over the summer, and all three new managers take charge of a competitive Premier League fixture for the first time on the opening weekend.

Andoni Iraola replaced Arne Slot at Liverpool, and his first league match is away at Newcastle United on the Sunday. Xabi Alonso is the new manager at Chelsea, starting with a trip across London to Fulham on the Monday night. Enzo Maresca replaced Pep Guardiola at Manchester City, beginning at home to Bournemouth.

The full club-by-club picture of who changed and who stayed is on our managers page for the season.

Every other confirmed date

Transfer windows. The summer window closes on Tuesday 1 September 2026 at 11pm UK time. The winter window opens on Friday 1 January 2027 and closes on Monday 1 February 2027 at 11pm.

International breaks. 21 September to 6 October 2026, 9 to 17 November 2026, and 22 to 30 March 2027.

Europe. The Champions League league-phase draw is on Thursday 27 August 2026, with the league phase beginning 8 to 10 September. The Champions League final is on Saturday 5 June 2027, the week after the Premier League's final day.

Domestic cups. Premier League clubs not in European competition enter the Carabao Cup in the second round, in the week commencing 24 August; the rest enter in the third round in September. The Carabao Cup final is on Sunday 21 March 2027 at Wembley. The FA Cup third round, where Premier League clubs enter, is on 9 January 2027.

Before any of it, the Community Shield between Arsenal and Manchester City was scheduled for Sunday 16 August 2026 at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff.

Television

Sky Sports will show a minimum of 215 live Premier League matches in 2026/27. TNT Sports holds a separate package, which includes Hull City v Manchester United on the opening Saturday.

Six of the ten opening-round fixtures are on Sky Sports.

What this page will not do

There are no predictions here, no projected table and no tip about who goes down. Every line above is a confirmed date, a confirmed fixture or a completed transaction, and each one is checked against the sources listed below.

BRYME's match pages fill in results, lineups and statistics only after a match has actually been played. Before kick-off they carry the fixture details and nothing that pretends to be analysis of a game nobody has seen.

If a kick-off time on this page differs from what you see elsewhere later in the season, the broadcaster selections have moved it. Check the official fixture list rather than this page.