Coventry City will end a 25-year exile from the top flight with a Friday night trip to champions Arsenal on 21 August – the same week Premier League referees are told to relax the rules on hair pulling after three red cards last season.
The Sky Blues, who won the Championship last season, face Mikel Arteta’s Gunners at the Emirates in the opening match of the 2026-27 campaign. Their last Premier League match came in 2001. The fixture list, published on 19 June, also sends fellow promoted side Hull City to host Manchester United on Saturday 22 August, while Ipswich entertain Sunderland the same day.
“Coventry City return to Premier League after 25 years while referees relax hair-pulling red cards.”
But the build-up to the new season has been dominated by a change in officiating. At the Premier League AGM earlier this month, clubs agreed to alter how hair pulling is judged after three players were sent off via VAR intervention in 2025-26. Everton’s Michael Keane, Manchester United’s Lisandro Martinez and Sunderland’s Dan Ballard all received red cards for the offence, drawing fierce criticism from their managers. Everton boss David Moyes insisted his player had been banned for “absolutely nothing”. United manager Michael Carrick called it “one of worst decisions I’ve seen”, but an appeal to overturn Martinez’s three-match ban failed.
From next season, referees will look for a “clear and deliberate action” with “excessive force and/or brutality”. Under the new guidance, Keane – who held and pulled the hair of Wolves’ Tolu Arokodare – would still be sent off. But Ballard and Stockport County’s Josh Dacres-Cogley, sent off in the League One play-off final, would probably receive only yellow cards. Martinez’s case is described as “borderline”. The VAR will no longer intervene for bookings.
At the same time, officials have been told to place greater emphasis on grappling and holding inside the area, which became commonplace on corners and set-pieces last season. A match between Everton and Manchester United in March encapsulated the chaos, with Toffees players standing on goalkeeper Senne Lammens and Leny Yoro pushed into the net by James Tarkowski.
The opening weekend also features several changes in the dugout. Andoni Iraola takes Liverpool to Newcastle on Sunday 23 August for his debut after replacing the sacked Arne Slot. Manchester City begin life without Pep Guardiola at home to Bournemouth on the same day. Xabi Alonso starts his Chelsea tenure away at Fulham on Monday 24 August, while Brentford host Tottenham on the Saturday.
The season will end on Sunday 30 May 2027, six days before the Champions League final. The later start and finish dates are a result of the World Cup, which ends 34 days before the Premier League kicks off. September and October’s international breaks will merge into a three-week window, and a full round of Boxing Day fixtures returns on Saturday 26 December, after only one game last season.