With the curtain fully drawn on the 2015/16 season and only the Championship Play Off Final to go to complete next year’s top flight teams, here’s when the new season will begin for Everton.
With eyes turning to the summer’s European Championship battle in France, fans are also starting to pay attention to pre season friendly campaigns, possible overseas tours and the generic never ending transfer speculation that kicks in at this time of year.
A few details about the new season are known though and opening day will again be on August 13 for the Premier League campaign, but a few sides will be kicking off competitively ahead of that with European commitments.
In date order, here’s when season’s and European competitions will begin for the known sides in the top flight for the coming year.
July 28 – West Ham
Finishing seventh in the Premier League, West Ham kick off on July 28 in the Europa League third qualifying round. The second leg takes place on August 4 but the dates could be interesting if West Ham are drawn home for the first leg.
With their new home at the Olympic Stadium featuring a European tie to kick things off, being drawn home for the first leg could lead to complications given it will be the home for a UK Athletics event on July 22-24 and it takes seven days to make the full transition back to the football home.
The draw will be made on July 15.
August 7 – Man Utd and Leicester
Manchester United and Leicester City will kick off their campaigns at Wembley in the Community Shield given United’s FA Cup success over Crystal Palace, and Leicester’s title winning term.
It will be Leicester’s first time at the new Wembley.
And that now brings us to everybody else in the division, including either Hull City or Sheffield Wednesday who contest the last spot in the top flight in the coming days.
The opening round of fixtures – depending on television picks – will be on Saturday August 13, and stretch to Monday August 15.
For other European entrants – those dates are.
August 16/17 – Man City
Finishing fourth, Pep Guardiola’s new team will taste European action in the Champions League Play Off first leg days after kicking off the Premier League season. The second leg will take place on either August 23 or 24 and the draw for the Group stages will take place on August 25.
September 13/14 – Leicester, Arsenal, Spurs and Man City (if qualified)
Going straight into the Group Stage of the Champions League based on top three finishes, Leicester, Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur will face their first games midweek on September 13 or 14.
For Leicester it’s a first European outing since the UEFA Cup back in 2000/01 and a maiden appearance in Europe’s elite competition. For Spurs it’s a Champions League return since 2011 where they lost out to Real Madrid at the quarter final stage.
September 15 – Man Utd, Southampton and West Ham (if qualified)
The Thursday night Europa League fixtures for United, Saints and West Ham (if qualified) begin on September 15.
West Ham have not appeared past Europa League qualifying rounds since 2007, and Southampton last appeared in the first round in 2003/04.
The draw will be made on August 26.
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