Why there is only one Premier League game on New Year’s Day

On By Littum

The Premier League fixture calendar looks a little different this holiday season, particularly New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day.

In the run-up to Christmas and the build-up to the New Year, the Premier League delivers an action-packed schedule of matches while the other four top leagues across Europe take a short break. Last season there were 20 games from Christmas Eve to New Year’s Day, of which eight games were played on 30 and 31 December alone.

Fast forward to this season and there were zero games on Christmas Eve, an entire Saturday with not a single game and only three games on December 30th. In addition, there were zero games on New Year’s Eve and only one on New Year’s Day.

The only Premier League clash on New Year’s Day is Brentford vs. Arsenal. The two sides are the only two clubs not to play at the weekend or on December 30.

Scheduling mostly comes down to the league’s rule of thumb no team can play two matches within 60 hours of each other between 21 December and 5 January. Since both Arsenal and Brentford played on Friday 27 December, they could not play on Sunday 29 December according to the guidelines.

However, the other 18 Premier League clubs played matches on Sunday 29 December and Monday 30 December, meaning they could not play again on New Year’s Eve or New Year’s Day due to the rules. Therefore, Arsenal and Brentford are the only two teams left who would be able to give fans a holiday game.

Brentford vs. Arsenal kick off on Wednesday 1 January 2025 at 12:30 p.m. ET. The game is set to unfold at the Gtech Community Stadium.

Mikel Arteta’s men will look to start 2025 off right with a win over the Bees. The Gunners come into the match unbeaten in their last 11 matches in all competitions and currently sit third in the Premier League with 36 points. A win on New Year’s Day will move them above Nottingham Forest into second place.

Brentford, meanwhile, sit in 12th place and have not secured three points since their 4-2 win over Newcastle United on December 7. Since the win, they have lost to Chelsea, Newcastle (in the Carabao Cup) and Nottingham Forest. The Bees are coming off the back of a 0-0 draw against Brighton & Hove Albion.

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