The Premier League’s beloved Boxing Day fixture list has been decimated, with only one game, Manchester United vs. Newcastle United (20:00 GMT), scheduled for 26 December this year.
The league is directly blaming the expansion of European club competitions (Champions League, Europa League, etc.) for the dramatically reduced schedule.
The European tournaments now take up more midweeks, forcing the Premier League to operate with fewer available weekends.
The change has sparked a furious reaction from supporters.
The Football Supporters’ Association (FSA) slammed the league’s belated fixture announcement and called the late 8pm Boxing Day kickoff for the long-distance Manchester United vs. Newcastle tie “thoughtless.”
While this year’s schedule is sparse, the league promises that next season will see more Boxing Day matches as the date falls on a Saturday.
They also confirmed that rest periods between the festive fixtures have been increased to ensure player recovery.
