The ultimate guide to football over Christmas and New Year - 2023/24 TV schedule

  • There's an endless supply of football to enjoy across the festive period
  • Ligue 1 and Bundesliga will break for Christmas and return in 2024
  • Manchester City competing in 2023 Club World Cup
The most wonderful time of the year is fast approaching
The most wonderful time of the year is fast approaching / ALBERTO PIZZOLI/GettyImages
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Football. Food. Family. In that order.

Christmas is much more than pretending you're pleased with your auntie's present and enjoying drunken family members you see twice a year engage in a verbal dispute during a game of charades. The camaraderie's great, of course, and the food is what many look forward to, but deep down, the festive period is all about the football.

While Europe's tendency to have some time off at the end of the year means fixtures from the continent's top leagues arrive at a less relentless rate, English football supporters are set to be treated to another barrage of festive action.

Here are all the notable Christmas and New Year football fixtures in the 2023/24 season.


Football to watch over Christmas and New Year - 2023/24


England

Jurgen Klopp, Mikel Arteta
Liverpool host Arsenal over the festive period / Robin Jones/GettyImages

Premier League festive fixtures

Date / Kick-off Time (GMT)

Fixture

UK TV channel and live stream

21/12/23 / 20:00

Crystal Palace vs Brighton

Sky Sports Main Event

22/12/23 / 20:00

Aston Villa vs Sheffield United

Sky Sports Main Event

23/12/23 / 12:30

West Ham vs Manchester United

TNT Sports 1

23/12/23 / 15:00

Fulham vs Burnley

Not available

23/12/23 / 15:00

Luton Town vs Newcastle

Not available

23/12/23 / 15:00

Nottingham Forest vs Bournemouth

Not available

23/12/23 / 15:00

Tottenham vs Everton

Not available

23/12/23 / 17:30

Liverpool vs Arsenal

Sky Sports Main Event

24/12/23 / 13:00

Wolves vs Chelsea

Sky Sports Main Event

26/12/23 / 12:30

Newcastle vs Nottingham Forest

Prime Video

26/12/23 / 15:00

Bournemouth vs Fulham

Prime Video

26/12/23 / 15:00

Sheffield United vs Luton Town

Prime Video

26/12/23 / 17:30

Burnley vs Liverpool

Prime Video

26/12/23 / 20:00

Manchester United vs Aston Villa

Prime Video

27/12/23 / 19:30

Brentford vs Wolves

Prime Video

27/12/23 / 19:30

Chelsea vs Crystal Palace

Prime Video

27/12/23 / 20:15

Everton vs Manchester City

Prime Video

28/12/23 / 19:30

Brighton vs Tottenham

Prime Video

28/12/23 / 20:15

Arsenal vs West Ham

Prime Video

30/12/23 / 12:30

Luton Town vs Chelsea

TNT Sports 1

30/12/23 / 15:00

Aston Villa vs Burnley

Not available

30/12/23 / 15:00

Crystal Palace vs Brentford

Not available

30/12/23 / 15:00

Manchester City vs Sheffield United

Not available

30/12/23 / 15:00

Wolves vs Everton

Not available

30/12/23 / 17:30

Nottingham Forest vs Manchester United

Sky Sports Main Event

31/12/23 / 14:00

Fulham vs Arsenal

Sky Sports Main Event

31/12/23 / 14:00

Tottenham vs Bournemouth

Not available

01/01/24 / 20:00

Liverpool vs Newcastle

Sky Sports Main Event

02/01/24 / 19:30

West Ham vs Brighton

Sky Sports Main Event


Manchester City's presence in the Club World Cup means they'll be absent for the first round of festive Premier League fixtures. That gameweek sees title rivals Liverpool and Arsenal face off at Anfield, while Wolves also host Chelsea in the first Christmas Eve fixture in almost 30 years.

The league's Boxing Day coverage, which includes six games, finishes with the biggest game of the day when Aston Villa visit Manchester United. From that point onwards, there is at least one Premier League fixture every day until 2 January excluding 29 December.


Championship festive fixtures

Date / Kick-off Time (GMT)

Fixture

UK TV channel and live stream

22/12/23 / 19:45

Bristol City vs Hull City

Not available

22/12/23 / 19:45

Swansea City vs Preston

Not available

23/12/23 / 12:30

Leeds United vs Ipswich Town

Sky Sports Football

23/12/23 / 15:00

Blackburn Rovers vs Watford

Not available

23/12/23 / 15:00

Leicester City vs Rotherham

Not available

23/12/23 / 15:00

Middlesbrough vs West Brom

Not available

23/12/23 / 15:00

Norwich City vs Huddersfield Town

Not available

23/12/23 / 15:00

Plymouth Argyle vs Birmingham

Not available

23/12/23 / 15:00

QPR vs Southampton

Not available

23/12/23 / 15:00

Sheffield Wednesday vs Cardiff City

Not available

23/12/23 / 15:00

Stoke City vs Millwall

Not available

23/12/23 / 15:00

Sunderland vs Coventry City

Not available

26/12/23 / 12:30

Preston vs Leeds United

Sky Sports Football

26/12/23 / 13:00

Millwall vs QPR

Not available

26/12/23 / 15:00

Cardiff City vs Plymouth Argyle

Not available

26/12/23 / 15:00

Coventry City vs Sheffield Wednesday

Not available

26/12/23 / 15:00

Huddersfield Town vs Blackburn Rovers

Not available

26/12/23 / 15:00

Hull City vs Sunderland

Not available

26/12/23 / 15:00

Rotherham vs Middlesbrough

Not available

26/12/23 / 15:00

Southampton vs Swansea City

Not available

26/12/23 / 15:00

Watford vs Bristol City

Not available

26/12/23 / 15:00

West Brom vs Norwich City

Not available

26/12/23 / 17:15

Birmingham vs Stoke City

Sky Sports Football

26/12/23 / 19:45

Ipswich Town vs Leicester City

Sky Sports Football

29/12/23 / 18:00

Southampton vs Plymouth Argyle

Sky Sports Football

29/12/23 / 19:45

Birmingham vs Bristol City

Not available

29/12/23 / 19:45

Cardiff City vs Leicester City

Not available

29/12/23 / 19:45

Coventry City vs Swansea City

Not available

29/12/23 / 19:45

Huddersfield Town vs Middlesbrough

Not available

29/12/23 / 19:45

Hull City vs Blackburn Rovers

Not available

29/12/23 / 19:45

Ipswich Town vs QPR

Not available

29/12/23 / 19:45

Millwall vs Norwich City

Not available

29/12/23 / 19:45

Preston vs Sheffield Wednesday

Not available

29/12/23 / 19:45

Rotherham vs Sunderland

Not available

29/12/23 / 19:45

Watford vs Stoke City

Not available

29/12/23 / 20:15

West Brom vs Leeds United

Sky Sports Football

01/01/24 / 12:30

Sunderland vs Preston

Sky Sports Football

01/01/24 / 15:00

Blackburn Rovers vs Rotherham

Not available

01/01/24 / 15:00

Bristol City vs Millwall

Not available

01/01/24 / 15:00

Leeds United vs Birmingham

Not available

01/01/24 / 15:00

Leicester City vs Huddersfield Town

Not available

01/01/24 / 15:00

Middlesbrough vs Coventry City

Not available

01/01/24 / 15:00

Norwich City vs Southampton

Not available

01/01/24 / 15:00

Plymouth Argyle vs Watford

Not available

01/01/24 / 15:00

QPR vs Cardiff City

Not available

01/01/24 / 15:00

Stoke City vs Ipswich Town

Not available

01/01/24 / 15:00

Swansea vs West Brom

Not available

01/01/24 / 17:30

Sheffield Wednesday vs Hull City

Sky Sports Football


Championship lovers are used to the hectic nature of the festive calendar and there will be four rounds of action to enjoy this time around. There's a full cohort of fixtures leading up to Christmas, while every team is in action on Boxing Day.

Another set of games arrives in midweek before another mammoth Championship offering on New Year's Day.


Carabao Cup quarter-final fixtures

Date / Kick-off Time (GMT)

Fixture

UK TV channel and live stream

19/12/23 / 19:45

Everton vs Fulham

Not available

19/12/23 / 19:45

Port Vale vs Middlesbrough

Not available

19/12/23 / 20:00

Chelsea vs Newcastle

Sky Sports Main Event

20/12/23 / 20:00

Liverpool vs West Ham

Sky Sports Main Event


The Carabao Cup quarter-finals will take place the week before Christmas. We're guaranteed to see one EFL side in the last four as Port Vale and Middlesbrough collide, while the other three ties are all-Premier League affairs.


France

Kylian Mbappe
Will PSG canter to the Ligue 1 title? / Jean Catuffe/GettyImages

Ligue 1 festive fixtures

Date / Kick-off Time (GMT)

Fixture

UK TV channel and live stream

20/12/23 / 20:00

Clermont Foot vs Rennes

TBC

20/12/23 / 20:00

Montpellier vs Marseille

TBC

20/12/23 / 20:00

Brest vs Lorient

TBC

20/12/23 / 20:00

PSG vs Metz

TBC

20/12/23 / 20:00

Toulouse vs Monaco

TBC

20/12/23 / 20:00

Lyon vs Nantes

TBC

20/12/23 / 20:00

Reims vs Le Havre

TBC

20/12/23 / 20:00

Strasbourg vs Lille

TBC

20/12/23 / 20:00

Nice vs Lens

TBC


There will be a Ligue 1 hiatus over Christmas, with the league enjoying a three-week break after its final matchday in December.

The standout fixture sees the impressive Nice take on Lens, who finished second in Ligue 1 last season. Paris Saint-Germain should conclude 2023 with a victory at home to Metz.

*Television scheduling is yet to be confirmed but Ligue 1 football is shown on TNT Sports.


Germany

Borussia Dortmund v FC Bayern München - Bundesliga
Harry Kane is on course for a record-breaking season in the Bundesliga / Jürgen Fromme - firo sportphoto/GettyImages

Bundesliga festive fixtures

Date/Kick-off Time (GMT)

Fixture

UK TV channel and live stream

20/12/23 / TBC

Eintracht Frankfurt vs Borussia Monchengladbach

TBC

20/12/23 / TBC

Werder Bremen vs RB Leipzig

TBC

20/12/23 / TBC

Heidenheim vs SC Freiburg

TBC

20/12/23 / TBC

Borussia Dortmund vs Mainz

TBC

20/12/23 / TBC

Stuttgart vs Augsburg

TBC

20/12/23 / TBC

Bayer Leverkusen vs Vfl Bochum

TBC

20/12/23 / TBC

Union Berlin vs FC Koln

TBC

20/12/23 / TBC

Hoffenheim vs Darmstadt

TBC

20/12/23 / TBC

Wolfsburg vs Bayern Munich

TBC

*fixture dates are scheduled to change


Who knows how many goals Harry Kane will be on by the time the Bundesliga's Hinrunde concludes the week before Christmas. The Englishman may have already broken Robert Lewandowski's single-season goal record. Nevertheless, Bayern wrap up 2023 with a tricky away clash at Wolfsburg.

Fellow title rivals Bayer Leverkusen take on the lowly VfL Bochum, while Borussia Dortmund host Mainz.

*Television scheduling is yet to be confirmed but Bundesliga football is shown on Sky Sports.


Italy

Josè Mourinho
Jose Mourinho's Roma have two huge Serie A fixtures to close out 2023 / Giuseppe Bellini/GettyImages

Serie A festive fixtures

Date/Kick-off Time (GMT)

Fixture

UK TV channel and live stream

22/12/23 / 17:30

Sassuolo vs Genoa

TBC

22/12/23 / 17:30

Empoli vs Lazio

TBC

22/12/13 / 19:45

Monza vs Fiorentina

TBC

22/12/13 / 19:45

Salernitana vs Milan

TBC

23/12/23 / 11:30

Frosinone vs Juventus

TBC

23/12/23 / 14:00

Bologna vs Atalanta

TBC

23/12/23 / 14:00

Torino vs Udinese

TBC

23/12/23 / 17:00

Hellas Verona vs Cagliari

TBC

23/12/23 / 17:00

Inter vs Lecce

TBC

23/12/23 / 19:45

Roma vs Napoli

TBC

29/12/23 / 17:30

Napoli vs Monza

TBC

29/12/23 / 17:30

Fiorentina vs Torino

TBC

29/12/23 / 19:45

Genoa vs Inter

TBC

29/12/23 / 19:45

Lazio vs Frosinone

TBC

30/12/23 / 11:30

Atalanta vs Lecce

TBC

30/12/23 / 14:00

Udinese vs Bologna

TBC

30/12/23 / 14:00

Cagliari vs Empoli

TBC

30/12/23 / 17:00

Hellas Verona vs Salernitana

TBC

30/12/23 / 17:00

Milan vs Sassuolo

TBC

30/12/23 / 19:45

Juventus vs Roma

TBC


It's all go in Italy over the festive period with calcio enjoyers getting their fix of Serie A to close out the calendar year. Two full matchdays have been scheduled between 22 and 30 December, with both rounds boasting a standout fixture well worth tuning into.

While Roma perhaps haven't been the most thrilling watch this season, there's bound to be drama when Jose Mourinho's side take on Scudetto holders Napoli and Juventus to finish 2023.

*Television scheduling is yet to be confirmed but Serie A football is shown on TNT Sports.


Coppa Italia round of 16 fixtures

Date/Kick-off Time (GMT)

Fixture

UK TV channel and live stream

19/12/23 / 20:00

Napoli vs Frosinone

TBC

20/12/23 / 20:00

Inter vs Bologna

TBC

02/01/24 / 20:00

Milan vs Cagliari

TBC

03/01/24 / 17:00

Atalanta vs Sassuolo

TBC

03/01/24 / 20:00

Roma vs Cremonese

TBC

04/01/24 / 20:00

Juventus vs Salernitana

TBC


Calcio's big boys enter the Coppa Italia in the round of 16, with Lazio and Fiorentina hosting their cup ties at the start of December. Napoli and Inter are both in action before Christmas, while the remainder of the ties are scheduled for the new year.

*Television scheduling is yet to be confirmed but Coppa Italia football is shown on Viaplay Sports.


Spain

Joao Felix, Daniel Carvajal
Barcelona and Real Madrid will both be expected to breeze through their festive fixtures / Quality Sport Images/GettyImages

La Liga festive fixtures

Date/Kick-off Time (GMT)

Fixture

UK TV channel and live stream

20/12/23 / TBC

Athletic Club vs Las Palmas

TBC

20/12/23 / TBC

Barcelona vs Almeria

TBC

20/12/23 / TBC

Alaves vs Real Madrid

TBC

20/12/23 / TBC

Granada vs Sevilla

TBC

20/12/23 / TBC

Mallorca vs Osasuna

TBC

20/12/23 / TBC

Atletico Madrid vs Getafe

TBC

20/12/23 / TBC

Real Betis vs Girona

TBC

20/12/23 / TBC

Rayo Vallecano vs Valencia

TBC

20/12/23 / TBC

Villarreal vs Celta Vigo

TBC

20/12/23 / TBC

Cadiz vs Real Sociedad

TBC

23/12/12 / 15:15

Atletico Madrid vs Sevilla

TBC

03/01/23 / TBC

Real Madrid vs Mallorca

TBC

03/01/23 / TBC

Sevilla vs Athletic Club

TBC

03/01/23 / TBC

Granada vs Cadiz

TBC

03/01/23 / TBC

Valencia vs Villarreal

TBC

03/01/23 / TBC

Las Palmas vs Barcelona

TBC

03/01/23 / TBC

Getafe vs Rayo Vallecano

TBC

03/01/23 / TBC

Girona vs Atletico Madrid

TBC

03/01/23 / TBC

Osasuna vs Almeria

TBC

03/01/23 / TBC

Celta Vigo vs Real Betis

TBC

03/01/23 / TBC

Real Sociedad vs Alaves

TBC

*fixture dates are scheduled to change


There will be a mini-break in La Liga over Christmas but there are still two matchdays to enjoy over the festive and New Year period. There's also a bonus fixture on 23 December as Champions League hopefuls Atletico Madrid and Sevilla clash in the capital.

Real Madrid and Barcelona will both be expected to claim maximum points from their listed fixtures above.

*Television scheduling is yet to be confirmed but La Liga football is shown on LaLigaTV and Viaplay Sports.


World

Pep Guardiola
Pep Guardiola will be hoping to lead Manchester City to Club World Cup glory / Marc Atkins/GettyImages

Club World Cup fixtures

Date/Kick-off Time

Fixture

UK TV channel and live stream

18/12/23 / 18:00

Fluminense vs Ah Ahly or Al Ittihad/Auckland City

Not available

19/12/23 / 18:00

Club Leon/Urawa Reds vs Manchester City

TBC

22/12/23 / 14:30

Third-place play-off

TBC

22/12/23 / 18:00

Final

TBC


Manchester City will be hoping to become the latest Premier League club to win the Club World Cup in 2023. The Cityzens join the competition in the semi-finals where they'll face either Club Leon or Urawa Reds.

Presuming they progress through that, City could take on Copa Libertadores winners Fluminense in the final on 22 December.