Premier League – “Boxing Day”, a “so British” football institution

Officially a holiday since 1871, December 26 is called “Boxing Day” because household staff or disadvantaged people received Christmas packages – boxes – from their employers or benefactors.

This heritage of the Victorian era is also celebrated in many Commonwealth countries (Australia, Canada, New Zealand), but it is also sometimes known as St. Stephen’s Day, especially in Ireland.

Without going back to medieval games, distant parents of football, played on religious holidays like Easter or Christmas, Boxing Day has always been a special date for English football. The very first interclub match, a derby between Sheffield FC and Hallam FC, took place on December 26, 160 years ago.

Twenty-eight years later, the inaugural English League season, which consisted of just 22 matches, saw Preston North End defeat Derby 5-0 on December 26, 1888. The tradition has continued and until the season 1957/58, it was even de rigueur that all the teams play on December 25 and 26, most often home and away matches between the same teams.

If the Christmas matches have been canceled, the end-of-year holiday period remains very dense, since between December 26 and January 4, thirty matches will be played with a single day off, the 31st.

Much like Thanksgiving in the United States, with American football, it is quite possible to avoid the tedious family after-meal discussions by passing in front of the small screen.

All the matches of the 15th day, on December 26 and 27, are broadcast, including one free on the BBC on the 26 at 4 p.m., Aston Villa-Crystal Palace.

Since 2019, the year-end period has also become a laboratory for the arrival of new players, Amazon Prime Video having two whole days reserved for it, including the 16th which runs from December 28 to 30.

Boxing Day and the end of the year celebrations are generally periods rich in derbies or regional matches. The advantage is twofold. These matches generally ensure large crowds and they make it possible to limit the movements of the teams in a busy period and when the weather can play tricks. However, the pangs of modern programming mean that very strong divergences exist.

This year, Chelsea, who receive twice over the next three days, will only cover around thirty kilometers to challenge Arsenal, as the only “away” game on the 26th, when Liverpool will have 1,300 km round trip. manage for his trips to Newcastle in the north on December 30, then Southampton in the south on January 4.

Placed at a time when temptations are numerous off the field and organizations tested, Boxing Day often reserves prolific matches.

The ten matches of the 24th day scheduled for Boxing Day in 1963 – a time when the lifestyle of footballers remained questionable – had seen 66 goals, including a 10-1 from Fulham to Ipswich, an 8-2 from Blackburn to West Ham and a rout of Manchester United at Burnley (6-1).

The English elite were then at 22 clubs, but Arsenal had seen their match against Birmingham City advanced to November 5, for a victory, also bloated, 4 to 1. The rapid succession of matches also makes the Boxing Day period a real test of fire for the ambitions of the clubs and it is often said that if you do not make a success of your season thanks to Boxing Day, you can completely ruin it.