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Yahoo
2 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
How are Premier League fixtures decided?
According to the Premier League, putting together the fixture schedule takes up to six months. The process is managed by multinational IT company Atos, which has its headquarters just outside of Paris. Advertisement A slew of information about the football calendar - international dates, European matchweeks, and the scheduling of the lower leagues - is inputted into the system so it can generate a list which functions. Further information such as policing capacity and geographical proximity are also taken into account. For example, the system is told that Liverpool and Everton cannot play at home on the same weekend, because doing so would put too much on strain on police resources and transport infrastructure in one city. The same goes for other closely situated rivals, like Manchester United and Manchester City, but the rules are more relaxed in London owing to the prevalence of top-flight clubs in the capital. Clubs can also make requests in case there is a potential stadium clash. For example, Old Trafford will host the Super League Grand Final on Saturday, 11 October 2025, so Manchester United are likely to request their fixture is away that weekend. Advertisement Once all of the background information has been inputted, clubs are put in a pairing grid, which defines when they will play at home and when they will play away. From there, the system generates a randomised set of fixtures. The fixture list is manually verified by Atos staff and representatives from the Premier League and Football League. If any issues are spotted, the process is repeated again and a new set of fixtures is generated until one is deemed to satisfy all requirements. Liverpool will enter the 2025-26 Premier League season as champions [Getty Images] What rules are there for home and away Premier League fixture scheduling? There are three key home and away rules which the fixture generator must abide by. Advertisement In any period of five matches, a club must play either three times at home and twice away, or vice versa. A club cannot start or end the season with two home or two away matches. A club cannot play at home twice or away twice for the fixtures which take place on or around Boxing Day and New Year's Day. When are football fixtures for the 2025-26 announced in other leagues? Other British leagues will announce their fixture lists on the following dates: Scottish Premiership - 09:00 BST on Friday, June 20 2025 National League - on Wednesday, 9 July 2025 Welsh Premier Division - 10:00 BST on Thursday, 10 July 2025 EFL - 12:00 BST on Thursday, 26 June 2025 Women's Super League - July 2025 What is Ask Me Anything? This article is the latest from BBC Sport's Ask Me Anything team. Ask Me Anything is a service dedicated to answering your questions. We want to reward your time by telling you things you do not know and reminding you of things you do. The team will find out everything you need to know and be able to call upon a network of contacts including our experts and pundits. We will be answering your questions from the heart of the BBC Sport newsroom, and going behind the scenes at some of the world's biggest sporting events. Advertisement Our coverage will span the BBC Sport website, app, social media and YouTube accounts, plus BBC TV and radio. More questions answered...
Daily Mirror
3 days ago
- Sport
- Daily Mirror
Sir Alex Ferguson 'had his doubts' over Man Utd fixture list in astonishing rant
The randomised Premier League fixture will be released on Wednesday, although doubts have been raised about the system - most memorably by legendary Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson An astonishing attack from Sir Alex Ferguson about Manchester United's fixture list prompted the Premier League to release their own statement in 2009. The official list of matches and their dates for the 2025/26 campaign will be released on Wednesday at 9am. The huge schedule details the rough plan of the 380 games that will be played between the 20 clubs in the top flight of English football. Premier League officials state the list is always randomised and put together by an outside IT company called Atos. However, after being left unhappy by a run of matches at the start of 2009, Ferguson tore into the Premier League's fixture list and insinuated that they tried to make life difficult for the Red Devils. In the 2008/09 campaign, United had to face nine of the 10 teams who finished directly below them the previous season away in the first half of the campaign. He was also aggrieved that his team had to play on the road straight after United's three Champions League away clashes at the time. In a pre-match press conference previewing an FA Cup third-round tie away to Southampton, the Scot tore into the Premier League. He said: "I've been saying this for a few months, but our fixture programme didn't do us any favours. I think we have been handicapped by the Premier League. They tell me it's not planned - bloody hell!' When asked if he felt the Premier League wanted to disadvantage United, he added: "I've got my doubts. I'm not saying what they do down there. "But next year we'll be sending somebody to see how it happens, I can assure you. I just don't understand how you can get the fixtures like that.' The previous summer, United did have the opportunity to raise objections to the Premier League about the fixture list but chose not to. Officials from the division refuted Ferguson's comments with a strong statement. It read: "The Premier League fixtures are put together through as random a process as possible. The initial list is created by specialist software before going to the Fixtures Working Party, which is made up of representatives from the Premier League, Football League, FA, clubs and supporters. "The police also approve it before it is sent to the clubs, at which point they can raise any objections they may have. There are various factors that go into the structuring of the fixture list - police requests, club requests, involvement in European or FIFA competitions for example - but the overriding factor is the luck of the draw.' Despite the tricky fixture scheduling, United were able to win the Premier League, pipping Liverpool to the title by four points. Throughout that era, Ferguson was far from the only person who was sceptical about the scheduling. At the start of the 2005/06 campaign, Jose Mourinho, who was beginning his second season at Chelsea at the time, told the People newspaper: "It is always Chelsea who get the worst games, the worst fixtures to play, while Arsenal always have the best ones." His comments were said after the reveal of the fixture list, which had Chelsea down to play away from home immediately after their first five Champions League games, while the Gunners had home matches after their European clashes. Join our new MAN UTD WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Manchester United content from Mirror Football. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Sport
- Daily Mail
Revealed: How Premier League fixtures are decided including THREE golden rules
It feels like the season only finished two minutes ago, but we will already be able to start building up to the next one on Wednesday morning, when the new fixtures are released. For the first time in eight years Premier League fans will see their side take on Sunderland, after the Black Cats joined Burnley and Leeds in earning promotion back to the top-flight. Liverpool will also be eagerly eyeing up their own fixture list, working out where the crunch games will come up in their bid to retain the Premier League title, with Arsenal and Man City likely hell bent on stopping Arne Slot's side. It may seem like the lists come out a little early, however Premier League officials have revealed that the process actually takes around six months, given the amount of data that goes into compiling the fixtures. The task, carried out by a French company, Atos, who are based near Paris, sees data entered into the system, such as the dates of international windows and European club games, before coming up with the list. That job becomes even harder with nine Premier League sides set to play in European competitions next term. Tottenham join Liverpool, Arsenal, Manchester City, Chelsea and Newcastle in the Champions League, Aston Villa and Crystal Palace will play in the Europa League, while Nottingham Forest enter the Conference League play-offs. That's sort of to be expected, but there are also other factors such as proximity between clubs on certain days and policing capacity to take into consideration, to ensure resources are not so thinly spread. In this sense, larger metropolitan areas with more than one club become a problem, such as Manchester, Liverpool and London. With the former two northern cities, Man City and Man United and Liverpool and Everton are not permitted to play on the same day at home, while London's greater resources - and number of teams - mean that is not such an issue therein. However there are three golden rules which cannot be broken when it comes to producing the fixture list. Firstly, teams must play three home games and two away games, or vice versa, in a five-game span; teams cannot have a four and one situation either way. Similarly, no side is allowed to begin or end the season with two home or two away matches. And lastly, teams aren't allowed to play home or away twice within the Christmas period, during Boxing Day and New Year's Day. A list is then produced based on all these mitigating factors, after teams have been paired up in a grid to determine home or away status, which is reviewed manually by Atos and officials from both the Premier League and the English Football League. After all that, if any errors still exist, then the system is repeated, with a brand new set of games being produced, and so on until a list is approved and officially rubber-stamped, to be announced in late June. Wednesday, June 18 will see the games for next campaign released, and you can follow all the action as it unfolds LIVE with Mail Sport.
The Sun
3 days ago
- Sport
- The Sun
How are the Premier League fixtures put together? Here's everything you need to know about the nine month-long process
TOMORROW football fans up and down the country will discover who their club's schedule for next season. The fixtures for the Premier League will be released at 9am on Wednesday as supporters plot trips and annual leave, with many visiting new grounds for the first time. 2 The fixture list is always eagerly anticipated as fans discover when they'll play their rivals and decide who has been 'shafted' with difficult runs. But with 92 clubs and 2,036 matches across the top four divisions to consider, how are the fixtures exactly decided and how much planning is involved? Here SunSport explains how it all works. How are the fixtures worked out? Despite what fans might think, there is a method to the madness as a random generator doesn't decide who is playing who. The man behind the list is Glenn Thompson, of Atos, an international IT services company, who has collated over 60,000 matches since taking charge back when the Premier League began in 1992. Thompson, who previously spoke to SunSport in 2018, told the Premier League's website: "For me it begins at the start of the year when I get the playing dates from the Premier League." His opening move is to build up a calendar by first adding all of the international dates from Fifa - which he gets three years in advance. Next up, the European club competitions are added, which Thompson said were more difficult to solve last season "because of the new formats". Thirdly, the FA add their dates for its domestic cup competitions. After the cup competitions and friendlies are out of the way, Thompson is finally left with the dates for Prem and league cup matches. He said: "We also consult fan representatives and other stakeholders, to take on board their views." Sports DESK EP18 _9_16 _AP_V6 By March, the Premier League ask fans for special requests around certain home and away fixtures - which is solved while working together with the local police. The league even ask clubs if they have specific wants and needs about playing at home on Boxing Day. Thompson then creates a fixture sequence which places each club in a pairing grid, which defines the dates they will be at home. For every game, the fixture computer knows which clubs are at home and which teams are away, and then it will mix them up at random. Are there any specific rules? In any five matches, sides should get three home ties and two away, with the process then reversed. This system prevents teams from playing successive home or away games at the start or end of the season to avoid a disadvantage. Some clubs will have a partner team that their home games cannot clash with, such as the two Manchester sides, as well as Liverpool and Everton. This season, fierce rivals Sunderland and Newcastle will be added to that Prem partner team list, after the Black Cats won promotion after beating Sheffield United in the Championship play-offs at Wembley. 2 In London it gets a bit more complex and less obvious because seven London-based clubs play in the Prem, while seven more feature across the EFL. Another added rule is that if you are scheduled to play at home on Boxing Day, you must travel away on New Year's Day, and vice versa. Thompson said: "We look at whether we have clubs from the same area travelling on the same train lines across the Football League and the Premier League on the same day." What happens if there are any problems? Thompson said: "If we have got any issues, we might have to go back and start again to produce a different set of fixtures. "I'm reviewing the fixtures all the time to ensure other things can be met." The computer is useful during the review because it will provide alternative dates if the Prem want to change a certain fixture. It can be that changing one match requires 40 other changes. On Wednesday, all 20 Prem clubs will learn the provisional dates for all of their fixtures, although some fixtures are subject to change. The exact date and time at which individual matches take place will be determined at regular intervals throughout the season based on TV selections.
Korea Herald
4 days ago
- Business
- Korea Herald
Driving emissions transparency: INEOS Styrolution rolls out product carbon footprint calculations across global portfolio
FRANKFURT, Germany, June 16, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- INEOS Styrolution now provides Product Carbon Footprint (PCF) data for all its products using a state-of-the-art tool, delivering transparent emissions data from raw material sourcing through manufacturing up until the factory gate. PCF data is calculated using the Atos PCF platform, with the methodology certified by TÜV Rheinland. With this data, customers can track scope 3.1 emissions for every product they purchase from INEOS Styrolution, supporting more accurate reporting, compliance with climate-related requirements, and increased supply chain transparency. "By measuring the carbon footprint of our global product portfolio, we take responsibility for our impact while enabling our customers to do the same," states Steve Harrington, CEO, INEOS Styrolution. "This tool enables us to be transparent about our emissions and product carbon footprints, while equipping our customers with the data they need to target scope 3 reductions and meet their climate targets." With automated, product-level carbon footprint calculations according to a certified methodology in place, INEOS Styrolution is among the few in the chemical industry offering its customers product-specific emissions data across its entire offering. Further information: Product Carbon Footprint (PCF) refers to the total greenhouse gas emissions associated with a product, from raw material extraction through manufacturing to the point it leaves the production site. This "cradle-to-gate" view helps companies and customers better understand the climate impact of individual products and identify opportunities to reduce emissions across the value chain. INEOS Styrolution's PCF methodology follows international standards, including ISO 14067:2018, the Together for Sustainability (TfS) PCF Guideline (V3.0), and the GHG Protocol. Scope 3 emissions refer to indirect greenhouse gas emissions that occur in the value chain of the reporting company – such as those from raw material production, logistics, product use, or disposal. Scope 3.1, a key subcategory, includes emissions from purchased goods and services – typically the largest share of emissions for manufacturing companies. About INEOS Styrolution INEOS Styrolution is the number one producer of high-performance styrenics, offering a broad portfolio that comprises styrene monomer, polystyrene, ABS, and advanced styrenics. The company delivers customised solutions for customers across automotive, healthcare, electronics, household, construction, packaging, toys, sports and leisure sectors. With more than 90 years of innovation in material science and 16 production sites worldwide, INEOS Styrolution combines global reach with local expertise to meet the evolving needs of its customers. This includes bringing safe, sustainable, and high-performing products to market and supporting their efforts toward meeting their sustainability targets. INEOS Styrolution is fully owned by INEOS Group.
