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THE Premier League fixtures for the 2020/21 season are out. 

But how are Premier League fixtures decided?

After a short break due to a delayed 2019/20Premier League season, caused by the coronavirus pandemic, England’s topflight will soon return. 

A shortened campaign is due to start on Saturday, September 12, and finish on May 23, 2021. 

In total, the next Premier League season will be five weeks shorter than usual.

The topflight has also made a decision to scrap its winter break to make room for fixtures.

Liverpool will enter the next campaign as Premier League champions for the first time in three decades, while Leeds will return to the topflight for the first time in 16 years.

Clubs involved in the late stages of both the Champions League and Europa League will be given a delayed start to the season.

Manchester City reached the Champions League quarter finals on Saturday, but lost out to Lyon, while Manchester United lost to Sevilla on Sunday, August 16.

How are Premier League fixtures decided?

The 380 fixtures to be played next season is a puzzle to solve.

Glenn Thompson, who works for Atos, a global leader in digital transformation, is in charge of doing just that, revealed exactly how the job is done.

He said: “We cannot do anything until we know the composition of each division, which is after the last EFL playoff. Then we can start looking at the main bit of compiling the fixtures.

“It is a matter of placing each of the clubs in a pairing grid, which basically defines the dates they will be at home. For every date in the season, the fixture computer knows who is at home and who is away and then it will mix them up randomly to determine which matches will take place on which date.”

Thompson said he will start working on the fixture list “at the start of the year” as that’s when the playing dates from the Premier League is usually announced.

“The whole thing is built up putting in the international dates from Fifa, then the European club competitions, then the Football Association adds in the dates for its competitions and what you are left with are the dates when you can play league and League Cup matches.”

After dates are decided, Thompson must then create a fixture sequence.

Thompson explained: “That’s the methodology we use, which is all about breaking the season down into a number of constituent parts, called sets.

“We break it down into five sets, that are reversed in the second half of the season.”

There are the “golden rules” of sequencing, he further explained.

In any five matches there should be a split of three home fixtures and two away, or vice versa.

Wherever possible, a club will also not have more than two home or away matches in a row, and will be home and away around FA Cup ties.

He said: “We will also strive to prevent any club from having to start or finish the season with two home or two away matches because it would be unfair for a team to finish with two aways, especially if they are looking for points.

“Around the Christmas period, if you are at home on Boxing Day you will be away on New Year’s Day, or the equivalent date.

“And we will also try to maintain a Saturday home-away sequence throughout the season wherever possible.”

The Premier League always involves the clubs and sends each one a form asking them to fill in three things:

• 1) Are there any dates you wish not to be at home? That is answered in conjunction with the local police.
• 2) Which club do you want to pair with?
• 3) Are there any teams you do not wish to play at home on Boxing Day?

Mr Thompson admitted he “can’t satisfy everyone” but if issues appear, they might back to “start over”.

He added: “Changing one match may require 40 other changes.

“We cannot accommodate everything but, on average, we satisfy higher than 85 percent every year.”  – Express.co.uk