The Premier League will have its first 16-day international break this season after FIFA merged the September and October windows.
The Premier League will have its first-ever 16-day international break this season, after FIFA merged the traditional September and October windows into a single extended period running from September 21 to October 6.
The league will play through Matchweek 5 on September 20 before pausing, with Matchweek 6 resuming on October 10.
What Will Be Played During the Break
During the extended break, European countries will play UEFA Nations League fixtures, while African nations will contest Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers, with each country playing two matches. CONCACAF teams will feature in a mixture of Nations League group-stage games and friendlies, while the United States and Mexico, already qualified for the quarter-finals, will play friendlies.
Asian nations will play friendlies in preparation for the Asian Cup in January 2027, following the conclusion of Asian Cup qualifying, while several South American countries are also scheduled to play friendlies.
The window is packed on the European side in particular: reigning world champions Spain face England, Czechia and Croatia, including a headline meeting with England at Wembley on September 26, before the group wraps up with fixtures including Croatia hosting Spain and England facing Czechia by October 6. The United States and Mexico are set to renew their rivalry in a “Clasico” friendly on October 3, while Brazil have friendlies scheduled against Australia twice and India in Kolkata.
Why the Change Was Made
Previously, there were four nine-day international breaks during the Premier League campaign, in September, October, November and March, with each country playing two matches per window. This season, the September and October breaks have been merged into one 16-day period, during which countries will play four matches rather than the standard two.
“With many players in Europe representing countries in Africa and South America, the idea behind the new calendar is to reduce the number of separate periods in which players fly across continents,” the Premier League said. “It will also reduce disruption by cutting the number of breaks between the start of the season and the end of the year from three to two.”
The changes were unanimously approved by the FIFA Council in 2023, with player welfare a factor in the decision, aimed particularly at reducing the number of long-haul return trips made by African, South American and Asian players based in Europe.
A Break That Feels Even Longer
The breaks can effectively feel longer for Premier League clubs, because players return from national-team duty before playing again the following weekend.
“The breaks tend to feel more like two weeks, or three weeks in the case of the new longer window — as players return to clubs and do not play until the following weekend,” the league said.
The Rest of the Season’s Breaks
The November international break will run from November 9 to 17, between Matchweeks 10 and 11, while the final break of the Premier League season will take place from March 22 to 30, between Matchweeks 30 and 31.
In November, European countries will continue in the Nations League with two matches, while AFCON qualification will progress with two more fixtures. The United States and Mexico will join the other qualified sides in the CONCACAF Nations League quarter-finals, while South American and Asian nations will play friendlies.
The March break will see the start of EURO 2028 qualifying for some countries, alongside UEFA Nations League knockout matches, including the League A quarter-finals and League A, B and C playoffs. AFCON qualification will continue, while the CONCACAF Nations League final will also be staged. Asian and South American countries will play friendlies during the window. Notably, the same March window has also been extended to absorb Good Friday and Easter Monday, meaning Premier League and EFL fixtures will no longer be played over the Easter weekend for the first time in more than a century.
The History of the International Window
The Premier League said the international-break system was established in 2002 and first used for qualification for the 2006 FIFA World Cup. In what became formally known as the “FIFA International Match Calendar,” FIFA introduced fixed periods in the season when clubs were required to make players available for their national teams, due to the increasing number of fixtures.
The league also noted that major tournaments such as the FIFA World Cup and continental competitions can take place within FIFA windows, even when they fall during the Premier League off-season.
“When the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) fell between December and January last season, clubs had to release players in a specific window for the tournament, though the Premier League did not take a break,” it said.
There had been discussions about reducing the number of international breaks further, but the current system will remain in place until at least 2030.
“Premier League matches are also not held on a Monday night ahead of an international break or on a Friday night after the break,” the release concluded.
