English Premier League calendar is always full of action and quite unpredictable. English Football is in action all the time, but this time, the flavor of the season is a bit different due to the Coronavirus pandemic.
The organizers need to keep European Competitions, Euro Cup, and FIFA cup dates in mind while chalking out the fixtures schedule.
All teams play two matches with other teams of the league at home and away ground each. This makes the fixture announcement a full-fledged job as about 380 matches’ dates and places need to be covered.
Listed here are some common questions every football fan and bookie needs to know about.
What is a football fixture?
Football fixture gives information about two things. First, it tells about the date when the match will be played. Secondly, it tells about the home team (accordingly, the stadium) where the match will be played.
The process of deciding fixtures is a tedious one, as nothing is confirmed due to the very busy football season in England and Europe. And when it is a FIFA year or Euro Cup year, the changes become more complicated.
For any season, the fixtures are decided just one month in advance. So, for the 2010-20 season, which started on September 12, the fixtures’ announcement was scheduled as below:
| September | 28 August 2020 |
| October | 11 September 2020 |
| November | 22 September 2020 |
| December/January | 9 October 2020 |
However, nothing was confirmed about these dates. The Coronavirus pandemic made conditions all the more uncertain, and various changes were made in the schedule. The best support to find the exact position of the games is available in the digital calendar that Premier Schedule maintains officially.
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Which fixtures in English Premier League 2021 were changed?
English Premier League is going on, as we speak. The season started late by about a month and many matches were played behind closed doors. Some of the fixtures were postponed due to the team members’ catching the Coronavirus infection too.
Some of the fixtures that have got affected in English Premier League 2021 are:
- Everton vs Manchester City
- Aston Villa vs Newcastle
These are the latest postponements in the English Premier League 2021. Earlier, the matches which were to happen in August were also postponed. Those matches were:
- Burnley v Fulham
- Leeds v Southampton
- Man City v Southampton
- Everton v Man City
- Fulham v Spurs
- Aston Villa v Spurs
- Aston Villa v Everton
Organizers have asked Manchester City to file reports regarding the reason behind the decision and have displayed unmatched professionalism so that every detail comes transparently to the football fans.
The entire season is being telecast on Sky TV and Amazon Prime Video also has got rights for a few matches.
How is the Premier League Fixture list decided?
Glenn Thompson is the Premier League official responsible for chalking out the schedule of this top-flight tournament of English football.
The playing dates are sent to him at the start of the year. Based on those playing dates, he schedules the fixtures.
The complete international Football calendar is considered while deciding the dates to avoid clashes. Since the clubs of the English Premier League participate in various tournaments, the fixtures are done to enable their appearances in all the tournaments for which they qualified.
FIFA, European Club tournaments, and Football Association dates are decided first. The Premier League’s dates are those left after the allotment of dates to these competitions.
Fixtures are decided on the method called sequencing. First, the season is divided into sets. Five separate sets are fixed first for the earlier half of the season. In the second half, the season is reversed.
The first rule of sequencing is that each club gets three home matches and two away matches to play. No two consecutive matches are home or away matches at the start and the end of the season.
Can two clubs from the same area have home matches on the same day?
It is an interesting proposition. The Premier League is designed so that no two clubs from the same area can have home matches on the same day.
This move is not because of some sport-related technicality but is a logistics focused issue. If the two games are played in the same area on the same day, traffic congestion can worsen up in that area. It leads to security issues. The management also becomes a difficult task.
Some of the closest clubs of English Premier League are:
- Manchester United and Manchester City
- Bristol City & Bristol Rovers
- Arsenal & Tottenham
- Millwall & Charlton
- Aston Villa & West Brom
- Sheffield United & Sheffield Wednesday
- Chelsea & Fulham
- Aston Villa & Birmingham City
Liverpool and Everton top this list because these are just 0.8 miles apart.
Who all are consulted to decide the English Premier League fixtures?
The clubs are kept in the loop while deciding the fixtures. English Premier League does not face competition for dates from the other football tournaments only. It also needs to consider other games’ tournaments while deciding the schedule.
There can be some clubs who may be renting out the stadiums for some other game. So, the fixture schedulers consult clubs to check out the availability of their turfs before assigning those dates.
Also, the police authorities and security agencies are informed and consulted about the choice of stadiums and dates to rule out the possibility of traffic and law and order upheaval in the city.
When are the Liverpool fixtures in the English Premier League 2021?
Liverpool held the 2019-20 English Premier League trophy and eyes are fixed on this club this season too.
It commenced the season by taking on Leeds United, the newly promoted team on 12th September. Other fixtures of Liverpool are:
| 12/09/2020 15:00 | Liverpool v Leeds United |
| 19/09/2020 15:00 | Chelsea v Liverpool |
| 26/09/2020 15:00 | Liverpool v Arsenal |
| 03/10/2020 15:00 | Aston Villa v Liverpool |
| 17/10/2020 15:00 | Everton v Liverpool |
| 24/10/2020 15:00 | Liverpool v Sheffield United |
| 31/10/2020 15:00 | Liverpool v West Ham United |
| 07/11/2020 15:00 | Manchester City v Liverpool |
| 21/11/2020 15:00 | Liverpool v Leicester City |
| 28/11/2020 15:00 | Brighton v Liverpool |
| 05/12/2020 15:00 | Liverpool v Wolverhampton |
| 12/12/2020 15:00 | Fulham v Liverpool |
| 16/12/2020 20:00 | Liverpool v Tottenham Hotspur |
| 19/12/2020 15:00 | Crystal Palace v Liverpool |
| 26/12/2020 15:00 | Liverpool v West Bromwich Albion |
| 28/12/2020 15:00 | Newcastle United v Liverpool |
| 02/01/2021 15:00 | Southampton v Liverpool |
| 13/01/2021 20:00 | Liverpool v Burnley |
| 16/01/2021 15:00 | Liverpool v Manchester United |
| 27/01/2021 19:45 | Tottenham Hotspur v Liverpool |
| 30/01/2021 15:00 | West Ham United v Liverpool |
| 03/02/2021 20:00 | Liverpool v Brighton |
| 06/02/2021 15:00 | Liverpool v Manchester City |
| 13/02/2021 15:00 | Leicester City v Liverpool |
| 20/02/2021 15:00 | Liverpool v Everton |
| 27/02/2021 15:00 | Sheffield United v Liverpool |
| 06/03/2021 15:00 | Liverpool v Fulham |
| 13/03/2021 15:00 | Wolverhampton v Liverpool |
| 20/03/2021 15:00 | Liverpool v Chelsea |
| 03/04/2021 15:00 | Arsenal v Liverpool |
| 10/04/2021 15:00 | Liverpool v Aston Villa |
| 17/04/2021 15:00 | Leeds United v Liverpool |
| 24/04/2021 15:00 | Liverpool v Newcastle United |
| 01/05/2021 15:00 | Manchester United v Liverpool |
| 08/05/2021 15:00 | Liverpool v Southampton |
| 11/05/2021 20:00 | West Bromwich Albion v Liverpool |
| 15/05/2021 15:00 | Burnley v Liverpool |
| 23/05/2021 16:00 | Liverpool v Crystal Palace |
The situation in the country is a bit unpredictable due to recent Coronavirus outbreaks. Thus, this schedule may get revised as per the conditions prevalent in the respective part of the city.
Conclusion
English Premier League fixtures decisions take a lot of planning and patience. There is no room for error. The schedule organizer has to consider the other tournaments, and sometimes, other sports too. TV slots are also dependent on the EPL fixtures. Given the pandemic condition ruling all over the country, the job has become more tedious for the organizers.