The Premier League fixtures are out and it’s a bumper opening weekend in August.
Manchester United vs Arsenal is the standout fixture – as the famous rivals do battle at Old Trafford on August 17th at 4.30pm.
4
The opening match of the 2025/26 campaign takes place at Anfield as Liverpool, who won the title at a canter last season, begin their defence by welcoming Bournemouth on August 15th at 8pm.
As for the newly-promoted sides, Sunderland will host West Ham, Burnley visit Europa League winners Tottenham and Leeds are at home against Everton.
Black Cats fans will witness Premier League football at the Stadium of Light for the first time in eight years.
For Tottenham, new manager Thomas Frank will come up against a former Spurs captain in Scott Parker, who guided Burnley to second in the Championship on 100 points.
Read more football news
United, despite their struggles last season, are usually strong starters on opening day, which is bad news for Arsenal.
The Red Devils have won the most opening-day matches in top-flight history, with 22 victories – a 66.7 per cent success rate – losing only seven of their week-one games.
The omens are not good for Bournemouth, either, given that the champions rarely lose on the first day.
Only once in the last seven seasons have the reigning champions failed to win – when Man City lost 1-0 to Tottenham in 2021.
However, City boss Pep Guardiola still has the best success rate with eight wins from nine openers.
The 2025/26 opening weekend fixtures
15/08/2025 20:00: Liverpool v A.F.C. Bournemouth – live on talkSPORT
16/08/2025 12:30: Aston Villa v Newcastle United – live on talkSPORT
16/08/2025 15:00: Brighton v Fulham
16/08/2025 15:00: Nottingham Forest v Brentford
16/08/2025 15:00: Sunderland v West Ham United
16/08/2025 15:00 Tottenham Hotspur v Burnley
16/08/2025 17:30: Wolverhampton v Manchester City
17/08/2025 14:00: Chelsea v Crystal Palace
17/08/2025 16:30: Manchester United v Arsenal
18/08/2025 20:00: Leeds United v Everton – live on talkSPORT
4
City have already spent £116million this summer in a bid to improve on their third-place finish last term.
Tijjani Reijnders, Rayan Ait-Nouri and Rayan Cherki are among the big-money arrivals at the Etihad.
Liverpool have also splashed the cash – agreeing a British record £116.5m deal to sign Florian Wirtz from Bayer Leverkusen along with a £40m deal for Bournemouth left-back Milos Kerkez.
It follows the arrival of right-back Jeremie Frimpong, who replaces Trent Alexander-Arnold in a £29.5m transfer.
Chelsea, who secured Champions League football with a fourth-place finish last season, beat Newcastle, Man United and Everton to a cut-price deal for Liam Delap, who joined the Blues from Ipswich for £30m.
Highly-rated Brazilian forward Estevao Willian has also signed from Palmeiras in a £56m deal that was agreed in 2024.
Arsenal are yet to announce any significant signings as they bid to improve on another runner-up finish – although Martin Zubimendi and Kepa Arrizabalaga are expected to be announced soon.
4
4
