Premier League’s unusual kick-off times explained as two games start at 7pm on Sunday

Two Premier League matches are set to kick off at the unusual time of 7pm this evening. The last game of the weekend usually starts at 4.30pm, as is the case with Manchester City’s clash against Manchester United on Sunday.

But the Premier League announced in October that Chelsea vs Brentford and Southampton vs Tottenham would be moved to a later 7pm slot. The decision was made to allow Chelsea and Spurs more recovery time following their European matches.

Spurs, who facd Scottish giants Rangers in the Europa League on Thursday night, were granted the contingency 7pm slot after their match was selected for live broadcast by TNT Sports. Chelsea, on the other hand, embarked on a 16-hour round trip of over 7,000 miles to Kazakhstan for their Conference League match against Astana, which began at 3.30pm UK time on Thursday due to the five-hour time difference. Their league match against Brentford was not picked for live TV coverage in the UK.

Sundays are typically dominated by Sky Sports’ two Super Sunday selections. This weekend, those slots are filled by Brighton’s 2pm game against Crystal Palace and the Manchester Derby at 4.30pm.

TNT Sports’ usual slot is at 12.30pm on Saturdays, which they had chosen Southampton vs Tottenham for. However, due to the short turnaround period needed for the north Londoners to play at 12pm, and the restriction against broadcasting it in direct competition with either of Sky Sports’ Sunday games, the fixture was rescheduled to 7pm.

In more rescheduling drama, Manchester United’s match against Fulham on January 26, 2025, has also been changed to a 7pm kick-off. Initially, TNT Sports had picked the Craven Cottage fixture for a Saturday midday slot.

But United’s Europa League clash with Rangers on January 23 rendered the usual broadcast time unfeasible, as the club insisted on a longer recovery period. Premier League clubs generally argue that a 72-hour window is needed for adequate player rest.

Fans have become accustomed to matches moving for broadcasters in recent times, but United supporters were left baffled upon first finding out that they would play on a Sunday evening. It also sparked anger from the The Football Supporters’ Association (FSA) after it was announced that there would be no train services from Manchester to London post-match.

An FSA statement read: “The Sunday evening kick-off slot is really unpopular with match-goers as public transport options are limited and it’s no good for families with young kids. When the general slot was announced the Premier League told us it was a ‘contingency’ – but it seems to be getting used an awful lot for such a provision.

“A big part of the problem is allowing broadcasters to choose ‘conditional’ picks which are then moved when a team progresses in Europe. The Premier League puts broadcasters first by allowing them to select such games knowing full well conditional picks are very likely to be rescheduled again.”