Owing to the coronavirus pandemic the upcoming campaign, which begins with the Community Shield on August 19, will be five weeks shorter than a standard season because of the late end to 2019/20.
With predicted fixture congestion ahead Premier League officials have made the decision to do away with the break for next term.
2020/21 Winter Break Scrapped by Premier League
Mixed Success
Last season saw the first winter break introduced by the Premier League, each team had one weekend and one full midweek off in February.
As it happened only a few short weeks following the break there was an enforced break of over two months when football was brought to a halt.
Top-flight managers are generally in favour of the concept of a winter break, it is widely used around Europe’s other major leagues and will follow what is typically the busiest time of a season.
However, due to scheduling difficulties, last season’s winter break coincided with FA Cup third-round replays, leading to teams either returning early or fielding youth sides in the cup competition.
Potential Headaches
The Premier League is due to release its fixture list next week, with both Manchester clubs expected to be given a delayed start to the season after reaching their respective European semi-finals.
Officials still have a major headache surrounding Tottenham Hotspur‘s schedule. Jose Mourinho’s side begin their Europa League qualifying campaign on September 17. Whilst the Carabao Cup is due to welcome Premier League sides into the competition on September 21.
This week has already seen major changes to both the FA Cup and Carabao Cup formats to make life easier for Premier League sides and to hopefully avoid player burnout.
Discussions for the Return of Spectators
Elsewhere, the Daily Mail has reported discussions between the Premier League and the government are ongoing about the return of fans to football stadiums. With October being mooted as a possible timescale.
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