The 2024/25 Premier League season opens up on the 16th August at 8pm with Friday Night Football as Manchester United host Fulham.
The game will be broadcast live on Sky Sports Main Event and will see Erik Ten Hag’s United team look to get off to the perfect start after what was an underwhelming campaign last season. Fulham hope to push on after a 13th place finish.
Following Man United against Fulham on the Friday night, there will be eight games across Saturday and Sunday before Championship winners Leicester City welcome Tottenham Hotspur to the King Power on Monday night.
The weekend kicks off at lunchtime with newly promoted Ipswich Town hosting Liverpool in the first game of the Arne Slot era after Jurgen Klopp’s departure in the summer. There will be four 3pm kick-offs, including last year’s runners-up Arsenal taking on Wolves. Play off winners Southampton make the long trip to Newcastle to start their season.
In the evening, Aston Villa travel to West Ham, looking to build on last season’s top four finish. The hosts hope to make a quick start to life under new manager Julen Lopetegui.
There is a doubleheader for Super Sunday, beginning at the Gtech Community Stadium as Brentford face Crystal Palace. The visitors are coming off the back of a very strong end to last season and will be aiming to make a push for a European place. Brentford are desperate for a better campaign than last, in which they were struggling in the bottom five.
This precedes a huge early season clash between Champions Manchester City and Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, kicking off at 4:30pm. Leicester vs Tottenham will conclude the opening weekend.
Friday 16th August
Manchester United vs Fulham – 20:00, Sky Sports Main Event
Saturday 17th August
Ipswich Town vs Liverpool – 12:30, TNT Sports 1
Arsenal vs Wolves – 15:00
Everton vs Brighton – 15:00
Newcastle vs Southampton – 15:00
Nottingham Forest vs Bournemouth – 15:00
West Ham vs Aston Villa – 17:30, Sky Sports Main Event
Sunday 18th August
Brentford vs Crystal Palace – 14:00, Sky Sports Main Event
Chelsea vs Manchester City – 16:30, Sky Sports Main Event
Monday 19th August
Leicester City vs Tottenham – 20:00, Sky Sports Main Event
As the season gets into full swing, you can see the full fixture schedule for the Premier League, and all other major leagues and tournaments, over on our Fixtures page.
Across the opening weekend, six of the 10 games will be broadcast live on TV in the UK. Starting with Friday Night Football, Manchester United vs Fulham at Old Trafford will be shown on Sky Sports Main Event & Premier League.
TNT Sports will be broadcasting the first lunchtime kick-off of the campaign with Ipswich vs Liverpool at 12:30 on 17th August.
Saturday Night Football is between West Ham and Aston Villa at the London Stadium, with a 17:30 kick-off. This will be shown live on Sky Sports Main Event & Premier League.
Super Sunday has two games, beginning with Brentford vs Crystal Palace at 14:00. This will be followed by Chelsea vs Manchester City at 16:30. Both games will be broadcasted on Sky Sports Main Event & Premier League.
The weekend ends with Monday Night Football, also shown on Sky Sports Main Event & Premier League. Tottenham, make the trip to take on Leicester City at 20:00.
Over the course of the season, there will be live coverage of 128 games exclusively on Sky Sports. TNT Sports will show 52 games, with the majority of these being lunchtime kick-offs, whilst Amazon Prime will broadcast 20 games. This includes Boxing Day fixtures.
Champions Manchester City will be fighting to win their fifth consecutive Premier League title, and become the first team to do so. However, they face a tricky start to their title defence with a trip to Stamford Bridge to take on a Chelsea side who are once again under new management. Former Leicester City boss Enzo Maresca has taken over the West London club, replacing Mauricio Pochettino, who departed shortly after the conclusion of last season.
Pep Guardiola’s side failed to beat struggling Chelsea in the league last year, firstly playing out a thrilling 4-4 draw at the Bridge, before dropping more points at the Etihad as they drew 1-1. Cole Palmer enjoyed an incredible debut campaign with his new club, and will be looking to haunt his former team once more as he settles in for a second season.
City will be desperate to get off to a quick start after their title race with Arsenal went down to the final day just two months ago. The Gunners will likely be their closest challengers again, so three points at Chelsea would be massive to kick-start the year.
Here we take a look at Smart Acca Picks for Saturday’s action, with this one being a decent shot at 70/1 chosen by Smart Acca via the Free Betting Hub App. This is a six-fold match...
