Premier League fixture release day on 18 June was technically the beginning of the new season and got fans excited about the upcoming campaign.
Getting off to a strong start is key to a good season. Four teams expected to be down the bottom of the table at the end of the season, making a positive start could make or break a campaign. Overall, 96 teams have won their opening two games to a Premier League season, and just three of those have ended up being relegated that campaign: Wolves in 2011-12, Hull in 2016-17 and West Brom in 2017-18.
Just one of the last 11 Premier League title winners have lost their opening game in that successful season – Manchester City in 2021-22, who lost 1-0 at Tottenham Hotspur.
This time around, reigning champions Man City travel to Stamford Bridge to face Chelsea, a team that they dropped four points against in 2023-24, including an entertaining 4-4 draw in London back in November. This is the first time that Chelsea have begun a top-flight campaign with a match against the reigning champions since 1971-72, when they lost 3-0 against Arsenal at Highbury.
Premier League Matchday 1 Fixtures: 2024-25
Manchester United vs Fulham (Friday 16 August)
Arsenal vs Wolverhampton Wanderers (Saturday 17 August)
Everton vs Brighton & Hove Albion (Saturday 17 August)
Ipswich Town vs Liverpool (Saturday 17 August)
Newcastle United vs Southampton (Saturday 17 August)
Nottingham Forest vs Bournemouth (Saturday 17 August)
West Ham United vs Aston Villa (Saturday 17 August)
Brentford vs Crystal Palace (Sunday 18 August)
Chelsea vs Manchester City (Sunday 18 August)
Leicester City vs Tottenham Hotspur (Monday 19 August)
New look Manchester United under Erik ten Haag should dispose of Fulham in the opening Friday night encounter. Balanced games include Everton against Brighton as well as West Ham United vs Aston Villa. The plum fixture is undoubtedly the Sunday late afternoon match where champions Manchester City face Chelsea whilst on Monday night there’s an interesting match between newly promoted Leicester City and Tottenham Hotspur.
