Premier League reveals commencement date for new 2020/21 season

The Premier League has revealed that the 2020/21 season will commence on 12 September and run until 23 May 2021.

The EFL has also confirmed that the Championship, League One and League Two seasons will commence on the same weekend, with their regular seasons ending on the weekend of  May 2021.

The pronouncements mean that the season is billed to begin behind closed doors, with spectators only set to return to venues on a socially-distanced basis from 1 October.

Also, the possibility of continuing to allow teams to make five substitutes per game was also discussed, but a vote is not expected to take place until the Premier League’s annual general meeting on 6 August by which point all 20 teams for next season will be confirmed.

A Twitter statement from the Premier League reads: “Premier League shareholders today agreed to start the 2020-21 Premier League season on September 12, 2020.

“The final match round of the campaign will take place on May 23, 2021.

“The Premier League will continue to consult the FA and EFL regarding the scheduling of all domestic competitions.”

Premier League Shareholders today agreed to start the 2020/21 #PL season on 12 September

The final match round of the campaign will take place on 23 May

The Premier League will continue to consult with @FA and @EFL regarding the scheduling of all domestic competitions pic.twitter.com/AE21rTqiwK

— Premier League (@premierleague) July 24, 2020

The current Premier League season will end on Sunday, 26th of July 2020 after it re-started following three months suspension because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The regular Championship season concluded on Wednesday, with the play-offs finishing on 4 August.

Most League One and League Two teams have not played since March.

The announcement confirms an already hectic and condensed fixture list due to the coronavirus pandemic disrupting the current 2019/20 campaign with a 100-day suspension.

The Champions League and Europa League will then take place between 5 August and August 23, with the Champions League final taking place just three weeks before next season is due to get underway.

The UEFA Nations League is also due to resume in September, with England set to face Iceland and Denmark in the week preceding the start of the Premier League season.

A date has yet to be confirmed for the Community Shield, which would usually take a week before the start of the Premier League season, a date that would clash with England’s Nations League fixtures.