What Are The Key Dates for the 2026-27 Football Season?

What are the Premier League and EFL key dates?

The Premier League kicks off on Friday 21st August at 8pm BST, with title holders Arsenal hosting newly promoted Coventry City. While the game isn’t expected to be a classic, the weekend sees the season’s full program beginning, with 8 Premier League games across Saturday and Sunday.

The Premier League’s final day will be on May 30th 2027. Some key dates in the title race include November 28th 2026, when Arsenal host Man City, and January 30th, when the reverse fixture is played at the Etihad.

Liverpool and Man United will also be hoping to change their fortunes this year. The two meet at Anfield on November 21st and at Old Trafford on January 23rd, coincidentally both one week before the Arsenal-Man City fixtures - the ends of November and January will bring some very important games in the title race.

The EFL Championship has already begun, with the first game being played on Friday 14th August. The Championship runs until May 1st 2027, with the play-off dates to be determined.

When is the FA Cup and EFL Cup?

The FA Cup has already begun, with teams at the bottom of the football pyramid playing off for the chance to face illustrious opponents in the later rounds. The extra preliminary rounds kicked off on August 7th, but the Premier League teams won’t enter until the third round on the weekend of 9th-10th January. The FA Cup final will be held at Wembley on Saturday 22nd May, a week before the end of the Premier League.

The EFL Cup (also known as the Carabao Cup) is also underway, with the preliminary round beginning on August 1st and the first round commencing on August 6th. The majority of Premier League teams will enter the competition in the second round, beginning on August 24th, with those playing in Europe joining in Round 3, which happens from September 7th-14th. The EFL Cup Final will be on Sunday 21st March.

When is the Champions League, Europa League and Conference League?

The preliminary rounds of the European competitions have already commenced, but the main competitions begin on September 8th (Champions League, league phase), September 24th (Europa League) and October 15th (Conference League).

The Champions League knockout phase begins on February 16th 2027, with the final being played at the Estadio Metropolitano in Madrid on Saturday 5th June.

The Europa League knockout phase will start on February 18th, and the final will be played on May 26th 2027 at the Waldstadion in Frankfurt.

The Conference League knockout phase also starts on February 18th, with the final coming on Wednesday 2nd June and played at Beşiktaş Stadium in Istanbul.

Conclusion

February is always an exciting month in European football, as the sleeping giants from the group stages dust themselves off and flex their muscles. Meanwhile, in the domestic league, November and January both look like pivotal months in the Premier League title race, with Arsenal standing as favourites but Manchester City, Man United, and Liverpool all keen to prove themselves this season.