The English Premier League, one of the world’s most watched and competitive top-flight football leagues, is set for its 2025-26 season kickoff this Friday, just over a month on from the conclusion of a dramatic 2024 World Cup. Defending champions Arsenal will get the new campaign underway at their Emirates Stadium home against promoted side Coventry City, with manager Mikel Arteta openly embracing the pressure of being the team every rival will target this term.
Last season marked a historic milestone for the north London club, who ended a 22-year wait to lift the Premier League trophy after three consecutive seasons finishing as runners-up. Having broken their title drought, the Gunners have entered the new term as clear bookmakers’ favourites to retain their crown, and they sent an early warning to challengers with a dominant 3-0 victory over 2023-24 runners-up Manchester City in last weekend’s Community Shield.
Arteta has strengthened his squad this transfer window with the additions of Bruno Guimaraes and Christos Tzolis, and a deal for Aston Villa defender Ezri Konsa is also on the verge of completion. Speaking ahead of Friday’s opening fixture, the Spaniard insisted his side is ready to handle the weight of expectation that comes with being defending champions, saying that being the hunted is far preferable to chasing the leader.
“We start from scratch, from zero, and we’re going to have to prove we are at the level to go back to that position again,” Arteta said. “We need to show that desire, and the ambition to be better than what we were last season, a month ago, a week ago. If you give me the choice, I want to be first, I want to be hunted, and I want to be in control of our future, rather than depending on somebody else.”
For Arsenal, last season’s title win was a cathartic moment after years of near-misses that sparked widespread questions about the club’s ability to compete at the very top. Arteta believes that overcoming those years of disappointment has built the resilience needed to become only the second side in Arsenal’s history to win back-to-back league titles, a feat the club last achieved in the 1930s.
He warned that the 38-game season is a long test of endurance, adding: “We need to breathe because it’s going to be a long marathon. We have the ability to improve, to evolve, and that’s what I sense and I feel around the club, especially around the players.”
Standing in Arsenal’s way on opening night is Coventry City, who are making their return to the Premier League for the first time in 25 years after winning promotion from the Championship last season. The Sky Blues’ journey back to the top flight is one of English football’s most heartwarming recent stories: just seven years ago, the club was competing in the fourth tier, and financial turmoil surrounding their stadium forced them to ground-share with other clubs on two separate occasions.
Even so, manager Frank Lampard is under no illusions about the tough challenge his side faces this term. “We will go through tougher times this year for sure because of the competition we’re up against now,” Lampard said. “It’s just a reality that we need to be ready for.”
Friday’s curtain-raiser is followed by a full schedule of matches across the weekend and Monday, with major changes at the top of many of the league’s biggest clubs. Manchester City, who finished second last season, will begin their first campaign in 10 years without iconic manager Pep Guardiola, who stepped down at the end of last season after claiming 20 major trophies during his decade-long tenure. Former Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca has taken on the unenviable task of replacing Guardiola, and will kick off his reign with a home fixture against Bournemouth on Sunday.
Liverpool, who finished a disappointing fifth last season, have also appointed a new manager: Andoni Iraola, formerly of Bournemouth, will take charge of his first game for the Reds on Sunday away at Newcastle United, replacing the sacked Arne Slot. Over at Chelsea, Xabi Alonso will begin his tenure as Blues boss with a tasty west London derby against Fulham on Monday.
Other opening weekend fixtures include Manchester United’s trip to newly promoted Hull City – who are back in the top flight for the first time since 2017 – on Saturday. Big-spending Tottenham Hotspur, who narrowly avoided relegation last term, travel to Brentford the same day, while 2024-25 Europa League winners Aston Villa, who have lost multiple star players over the summer, head to Brighton on Sunday.