Sports
Source: Sky Sports
A Premier League match will be played on Christmas Eve for the first time in 28 years when Wolves host Chelsea.
Originally scheduled for 23 December, the fixture will now take place on Sunday, 24 December at 13:00 GMT.
The only previous Christmas Eve match since the Premier League was formed in 1992 took place in 1995, when Leeds United beat Manchester United 3-1.
Three rounds of festive fixtures were provisionally set for 23, 26 and 30 December.
The Crystal Palace v Brighton game from the first round has been brought forward to Thursday, 21 December (20:00), while Aston Villa v Sheffield United will take place on Friday, 22 December (20:00 GMT).
Six matches remain on Saturday, 23 December before Chelsea visit Wolves on Christmas Eve.
The second round of festive fixtures begins with five matches on Tuesday, 26 December and three on Wednesday, 27 December.
Then on Thursday, 28 December, Brighton host current Premier League leaders Tottenham and West Ham travel to Arsenal.
Because those matches take place on a later date, after six matches are held on Saturday, 30 December, Arsenal’s trip to Fulham and Tottenham’s home match against Bournemouth are scheduled for Sunday, 31 December.
Liverpool versus Newcastle (20:00) on Monday, 1 January and West Ham against Brighton on Tuesday, 2 January (20:00) complete the fixtures.
The Premier League said: “As in previous seasons, special arrangements have been made to allow more time between games played across the three festive matchweeks.
“This will allow greater time for players to recover, with the rest periods between matchweeks 18, 19 and 20 being increased to ensure that no club plays within 60 hours of another match.”
Chelsea will have the shortest recovery time, with 143.5 hours between their first kick-off and third kick-off, while Brighton have the most with 287.5 hours – double that of Chelsea (see below).
The Football Supporters’ Association said a Christmas Eve fixture was “an unwanted present which no-one asked for”, while the Chelsea Supporters’ Trust (CST) described the decision as “totally unacceptable”.
The CST said it would request that the Premier League consults supporters on this issue and reverse the decision, having requested an urgent meeting with decision-makers alongside the Wolves 1877 Trust.
The Premier League previously decided against rearranging Arsenal v Liverpool as a Christmas Eve fixture in 2017 following a backlash from supporters.
One match yet to be given a date is Manchester City’s home match against Brentford, originally scheduled for 23 December, which has been postponed because of the champions’ participation in the Fifa Club World Cup.
After the winter World Cup in Qatar last season, Premier League fixtures resumed on 26 December with a televised game every day from then until 5 January – except for 29 December.
Sky Sports, TNT Sports and Prime Video will share broadcast rights – with 29 December again the only date without a televised Premier League match during the festive period.
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October 27, 2023 @ 7:38 GMT|
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