This doesn't mean that fans will be without football for a fortnight, however. The break has been structured in order to allow players a well-earned break and satisfy fans' insatiable hunger for the game.
How Does The Winter Break Work?
This winter break was first confirmed back in May 2018, and this is how it is going to work…
The break has been designed so that all 20 teams can enjoy a break of 13 days between two fixtures.
For some clubs, including Manchester United and Chelsea, the Premier League winter break has already begun. Rather than match the system used in European leagues where the whole division shuts down for a set period of time, the Premier League winter break is staggered.
The break is divided into two sections to ensure that there is no weekend without league football in the month of February.
The original plan was for eight clubs to take a break first, with no games for them scheduled this coming weekend, with the remaining 12 to have their time off the following weekend when the others have returned to action. But FA Cup replays have dented that for some…
A handful of Premier League clubs – Liverpool, Newcastle, Southampton, Tottenham – played FA Cup fourth-round replay this week, which has eaten into their break.
But, the break isn't without its flaws. League leaders Liverpool, who have already played 38 games this season, are one of four teams to have an FA Cup replay slap bang in the middle of their "break", with Jurgen Klopp insisting that a youth team will participate in the fourth-round rerun against Shrewsbury at Anfield.
Who Has the Most Time off?
Below is a table showing how many days off each Premier League club will have, with inclusive date ranges of their respective breaks. Liverpool players will actually have a longer break than shown because of Klopp’s plan to use an Under-23 team for the Reds’ FA Cup replay.
The date range is inclusive of each team’s first and last day off after and before the games.
| Clubs | Numbers of Days Without a Game |
|---|---|
| Chelsea | 15 days (2 Feb - 16 Feb) |
| Manchester United | 15 days (2 Feb - 16 Feb) |
| Aston Villa | 14 days (2 Feb - 15 Feb) |
| Everton | 14 days (9 Feb - 22 Feb) |
| Watford | 14 days (9 Feb - 22 Feb) |
| West Ham | 14 days (10 Feb - 23 Feb) |
| Arsenal | 13 days (3 Feb -15 Feb) |
| Brighton | 13 days (9 Feb - 21 Feb) |
| Crystal Palace | 13 days (9 Feb - 21 Feb) |
| Norwich | 13 days (2 Feb - 14 Feb) |
| Bournemouth | 12 days (10 Feb - 21 Feb) |
| Burnley | 12 days (3 Feb -14 Feb) |
| Leicester | 12 days (2 Feb - 13 Feb) |
| Manchester City | 12 days (10 Feb - 21 Feb) |
| Sheffield United | 12 days (10 Feb - 21 Feb) |
| Wolves | 12 days (2 Feb - 13 Feb) |
| Newcastle | 11 days (5 Feb - 15 Feb)* |
| Liverpool | 10 days (5 Feb - 14 Feb)* |
| Tottenham | 10 days (6 Feb - 15 Feb)* |
| Southampton | 9 days (6 Feb - 14 Feb)* |
*break shortened by scheduling of FA Cup replay
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