The festive period for English football fans is a treasured time of the year. With a calendar packed full of matches, fans can watch their favorite teams up to four times in a little over a week around Christmas. Traditionally, Boxing Day football and New Year’s Day games are staples in the calendar of all football enthusiasts.
Christmas Day football used to be a common occurrence, with teams playing back-to-back games against the same opponents on consecutive days. In 1957/58, the reigning First Division champions, Manchester United, played Luton on Christmas Day at Old Trafford and then again the next day at Kenilworth Road. The practice of playing matches on Christmas Day and in the days immediately following was common throughout the early years of football in England.
Teams such as Manchester United, Liverpool, and Preston regularly played matches on Christmas Day in the late 19th century. Arsenal, however, played away from home on Christmas Day from 1913 due to restrictions imposed by the lease of their home stadium, Highbury.
Christmas Day football continued into the late 1930s and during the Wartime leagues, reaching its peak in popularity in the late 1940s following the end of the Second World War. However, despite the massive attendances at Christmas matches, the tradition came to an end in the late 1950s.
Several factors contributed to the phasing out of Christmas Day football. Public transport, which had previously allowed fans to attend matches on Christmas Day, ceased to run in 1959. In addition, the widespread availability of floodlights and the emergence of television in households across the country offered new forms of entertainment, making it unnecessary to attend football matches on Christmas Day.
Since the last Christmas Day game in 1965, the tradition has not been revived. Despite attempts to bring it back, it has now been 55 years since the last Christmas Day game in English football. While fans may feel nostalgic for the tradition, the phasing out of Christmas Day football marks a significant shift in the landscape of the sport.
In conclusion, while Christmas Day football was once a cherished part of the football calendar, the tradition has become a thing of the past in England. With the advent of new technologies and entertainment options, the need for matches on Christmas Day has diminished, making it a relic of the past for football fans across the country.
