Everton's 2026/27 Premier League Fixtures: Key Dates and Early Challenges

Everton’s roadmap for the 2026/27 Premier League season is set – and it wastes no time in testing David Moyes’ squad or the patience of their supporters.

The campaign opens at the Hill Dickinson Stadium on Saturday, August 22, with Crystal Palace the first visitors. A home curtain-raiser, a new season, and a fanbase desperate to move on from last year’s 13th-place finish: it will feel like a line in the sand as much as a kick-off.

A trip to Bournemouth follows on August 29 before Manchester United arrive on September 5, an early glamour tie that will quickly show how far Moyes’ side have progressed. Tottenham away and newly promoted Ipswich at home round off a demanding first month and a half.

Early tests and familiar faces

Everton will see all three promoted clubs inside their first 10 league matches, a sequence that could quietly define the tone of the season. Ipswich visit Merseyside on September 19, while November 7 brings a particularly intriguing reunion: former manager Frank Lampard returns to the Hill Dickinson with his Coventry City side.

By then, Everton will already have negotiated a rugged October: Hull away, Chelsea at home, and back-to-back away trips to Arsenal and Newcastle. It is the kind of run that exposes any early-season illusions.

Derby revenge ringed in red

One date, though, will already be circled in permanent ink.

On the weekend of November 28, Liverpool cross Stanley Park for the first Merseyside derby of the season. Everton will still feel the sting of last season’s stoppage-time defeat, and Moyes’ men get their shot at payback in front of their own supporters.

The return fixture at Anfield comes on January 30. Two derbies, two pressure points, and potentially two huge markers in whatever story Everton choose to write this year.

Festive fixtures and heavyweight clashes

The Christmas period offers little respite. Everton spend much of December on the road – Aston Villa, Brighton and Nottingham Forest all away – but Boxing Day brings Sunderland to the Hill Dickinson. A traditional home Boxing Day, a full house, and the kind of fixture supporters expect to win.

Four days later, on December 30, Manchester City roll into town for an 8pm kick-off. It is one of those nights that can either drain a squad or ignite a season.

January brings a second meeting with Aston Villa, this time at home on the 6th, followed by Coventry away and Brentford at the Hill Dickinson before that Anfield derby closes out the month.

Run-in shapes up

By the time spring arrives, Everton will know exactly where they stand.

February features home games against Newcastle and Leeds, plus away trips to Sunderland and Nottingham Forest. March turns up the heat: Manchester City away under the lights on the 3rd, Manchester United at Old Trafford on the 13th, and Tottenham visiting Merseyside on the 20th. It is a brutal, big-club stretch that will ask serious questions of squad depth and resilience.

April’s schedule looks more balanced on paper – Crystal Palace away, Bournemouth at home, Brighton at home – but any complacency will be punished in a league that rarely offers soft landings.

The final month is unforgiving. Fulham away on May 1, Hull at home on May 8, Chelsea away on May 15 and Arsenal at the Hill Dickinson on May 23. Then, on May 30, Everton close their Premier League campaign at Portman Road against Ipswich Town. An away day that could carry European implications, mid-table comfort, or something far more anxious.

Key dates in a pivotal season

Beyond the league grind, the domestic cups loom in the background. The FA Cup third round begins on January 9, the Carabao Cup final is set for March 21, and the FA Cup final falls on May 22. How long Everton stay involved in those competitions will say plenty about their progress under Moyes.

For now, the path is clear. Crystal Palace at home to start, Ipswich away to finish, and Liverpool twice in between.

What Everton do with that journey will decide whether 2026/27 is remembered as a reset, a breakthrough – or just another year of what-ifs.