Fantasy Premier League: Analysing the early-season fixtures – does anyone have an easy start?
For 2025-26, the fixture analysis is compelling, with none of the clubs you'd traditionally invest in having a remarkable start in terms of their opening games.
Add into the mix a full complement of chips for the first half of the season, plus a boost to five free transfers for Gameweek 16, and chip strategy becomes a key consideration, too.
Before the Premier League season even kicks off, we've had Crystal Palace beating Liverpool on penalties in the Community Shield, while Tottenham Hotspur will travel to Italy to contest the UEFA Super Cup against Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday.
As it stands, Crystal Palace actually have six competitive fixtures in August, with their demotion to the UEFA Conference League — Palace have appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) to present the club's case for reinstatement to the Europa League — seeing them in two-legged play-off action in the midweeks between the opening three Premier League gameweeks.
For the other sides who have qualified for European football this season (Liverpool, Arsenal, Manchester City, Chelsea, Newcastle, Spurs, Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest), they have no midweek fixtures in August once the Premier League has begun.
That presents a big advantage compared to the other sides not in Europe, who have Carabao Cup second-round action in the midweek between Gameweek Two and Gameweek Three. Following Gameweek Three, from September 1-9, we then have the first international break of the season.
Following this first international break at the start of September, the schedule then really ramps up for those clubs in Europe as the group stages of those competitions begin. By this time, the summer transfer window has closed.
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Given the proximity of the first international break and gaps in the midweek schedule for the teams we traditionally invest in, I'm going to initially look at the fixtures for the opening three gameweeks of the season.
Nottingham Forest, Aston Villa, Spurs and Chelsea each have two home games in this three-game period, with reasonable opening fixtures across the board. Forest top the Fantasy Football Hub fixture ticker, which ranks teams by the overall ease of their games over the opening six gameweeks.
Nottingham Forest host Brentford and West Ham, sandwiching a trip to Crystal Palace, who could well be fatigued given their European commitments. They do then face Arsenal in Gameweek Four, before they face promoted teams Burnley and Sunderland, giving their assets some longevity.
Aston Villa have a trickier opener at home to Newcastle United, but investors shouldn't be put off: Villa Park is a fortress, with Unai Emery's side coming off 4-1 victors in this fixture back in April. They then face Brentford and Crystal Palace. Their favourable schedule extends until Gameweek Nine.
Spurs have a tough away trip to Manchester City in Gameweek Two, but their home games either side are much kinder, beginning with promoted Burnley and then Bournemouth. New head coach Thomas Frank could make an early impact and their fixtures remain positive into September and October.
Chelsea will be thankful for a favourable run of opening fixtures after a busy summer winning the Club World Cup, meaning a shorter pre-season for them. They face Crystal Palace, West Ham and Fulham in their first three games. The schedule remains kind in September before they host Liverpool in early October.
Manchester City face a trip to Wolves in Gameweek One, who have been a bogey team for them in the past. Following their clash with Tottenham in Gameweek Two, it's then a trip to Brighton, with the Manchester derby coming immediately after the international break.
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Liverpool's opening schedule is tough to call. They begin the season hosting Bournemouth in the Friday-night game on August 15, but then travel to Newcastle United before entertaining Arsenal in Gameweek Three. Beyond that, it's a trip to Burnley and the Merseyside derby at Anfield.
Arsenal share the same challenging start given that meeting in Gameweek Three between last season's top two. They kick off their campaign at Old Trafford in Gameweek One, with their home game against promoted Leeds United in Gameweek Two a key one to target. Their schedule doesn't improve into September, where they face Nottingham Forest, Manchester City and Newcastle United.
Newcastle United have the toughest opener of all the sides involved in Europe, travelling to Aston Villa on the opening weekend before hosting Liverpool. Their trip to Leeds United in Gameweek Three could be the time to jump on board their assets, with Wolves and Bournemouth after the break.
Bearing in mind that Liverpool and Arsenal face off in Gameweek Three and Newcastle United are against Leeds United, this could provide an early opportunity to use the Free Hit chip.
Manchester United hosting Burnley and Brentford entertaining Sunderland are also fixtures to target here.
It's important for managers to consider their chip strategy when building a draft for Gameweek One, since it could heavily impact how far into the future you look ahead in terms of fixtures.
Given the addition of five free transfers to cover Africa Cup of Nations call-ups in Gameweek 16, there's an even stronger case for an early wildcard this season, perhaps as soon as Gameweek Four. This also allows you to build team value quickly.
Fixture runs around Gameweek 16 will also be worth planning for. Arsenal head into a good run of fixtures at this point, with Wolves, Everton, Brighton, Aston Villa and Bournemouth in their festive schedule.
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It's important to have a loose strategy to start the season with, but that could provide inflexibility further down the line. While there are no predicted double gameweeks in the first half of the season, external factors like bad weather could change things.
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