There is no doubt that the Premier League is the best league in the world. For any reason, it may interest you to know how many games are played in a Premier League season.
In this article, you’ll find out how many games a Premier League team plays in a season.
Also, you’ll find out the total number of Premier League matches and how many games a Premier League club can play in a complete season.
Read More: Premier League Rules Explained
The Premier League Schedule Breakdown
In an ideal situation, Premier League runs from August to May every season.
Pointedly, the Premier League starts on the first weekend of August.
Most times, the Premier League starts on a Saturday. However, in 2019/20, it started on Friday, August 9.
There will be a repeat of Friday’s Premier League Kick-off. The 2022/23 Premier League season would begin on Friday, August 5, 2022, and end on Sunday, May 28, 2022.
You can find out the complete Premier League fixture for the 2022/23 season.
Also, you can learn more about the Premier League in the video below.
On What Days Are Premier League Matches Played?
Throughout the season, most League matches are played on weekends – Saturday and Sunday especially.
However, in some cases, matches are scheduled for Friday, Monday, or any other day of the week.
The major factor that determines scheduling or rescheduling matches to weekdays is other cup matches.
Read More: Who Is The Best Premier League Midfielder?
At What Times Are EPL Matches Played?
During the week, EPL matches are played mostly at night. Why? Just so the majority of fans would be able to watch these matches after returning from work.
These weekday matches start anywhere from 7:15 Pm to 8:00 pm UK time.
On weekends, however, most of the Premier League matches are played during the day. The first-weekend fixture on Saturday usually starts anywhere from 12:30 pm to 1:00 pm UK time.
Calculation: how many games in a premier league season?
The total number of Premier League matches in a season is 380. How?
There are 20 Premier League teams. The 20 teams play against each other every week, hence 10 fixtures per week in the Premier League.
Also, remember that each team plays a total of 38 matches, hence there are 38 match days.
Therefore, we arrived at 380 by multiplying 10 fixtures per week by 38 match days (10 X 38 = 380).
Read on to get a more detailed breakdown.
We’ll calculate in two ways; for a single team and the entire League.
Per team calculation: How Many Games A Team Plays In A Premier League Season
The total number of Premier League matches a single team would play during a season is 38
Since 1992, 20 teams compete in the Premier League.
Each team will play 19 other teams in the League twice – home and away. Hence, 19 X 2 = 38.
Hence, the total number of Premier League matches a single team would play during a season is 38.
This explains why there are 38 is always the total number of matches played when you check the Premier League table on the last day of the season.
Consider Reading: Who Is The Best Manchester City Player?
Cumulative League Calculation: Total Games Played By ALL Premier League Teams In A Season
Remember, there are 20 Premier League teams. The 20 teams play against each other every week, hence 10 fixtures per week.
Also, remember that there are a total of 38 matches to be played.
Therefore, the total number of Premier League matches in a season is 380.
Here is how we arrived at 380 – the total number of fixtures per week (10) multiplied by the total number of weeks or match days (38) equals 380 matches.
Hence, 10 X 38 = 380 total number of Premier League matches in a season.
However, there is a wrong way to calculate this.
A wrong way to calculate this is by multiplying one team’s total matches by 20 teams. i.e. 38 X 20 = 760. This is the wrong way to calculate the total Premier League matches.
Why you may ask.
In the above calculation, two things are wrong:
- There is duplicity in the calculation. One single match (fixture) would be counted twice.
- The focus has shifted from the collective to the collective fixture and wrongly changed to the individual team focus.
Now, you are curious to know how to accurately calculate the total Premier League fixture in a season.
Read Also: Who Is The Best Premier League Center Back?
Former Premier League Schedule Calculation
Before 1992, 22 teams played in the Premier League.
This means each team would pay for 42 matches and there were 11 fixtures per week.
Using our formula above, the total number of Premier League matches played before 1992 would be 42 X 11 = 462.
Which Player Has The Most Premier League Appearances?
Gareth Barry is the player with the highest number of Premier League appearances – 653.
Ryan Giggs is next with 632 Premier League appearances.
See below the top 10 list of players with the highest Premier League appearances.
| Rank | Player | Nationality | Appearances |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gareth Barry | England | 653 |
| 2 | Ryan Giggs | Wales | 632 |
| 3 | Frank Lampard | England | 609 |
| 4 | James Milner | England | 588 |
| 5 | David James | England | 572 |
| 6 | Gary Speed | Wales | 535 |
| 7 | Emile Heskey | England | 516 |
| 8 | Mark Schwarzer | Australia | 514 |
| 9 | Jamie Carragher | England | 508 |
| 10 | Phil Neville | England | 505 |
Which Team Has Played The Most Matches In A Season?
We already know that every team plays a total of 38 matches in the Premier League alone.
However, due to other commitments like FA Cup, Carabao Cup, Champions League, and other cup matches.
In the 2012/13 season, Chelsea played 69 matches across all competitions – the most by any football team.
In that season, Chelsea played the Premier League, Champion League, Europa League, FA Cup, League Cup, Club World Cup, UEFA Super Cup, and the community shield.
See a breakdown of other teams that played the most matches in a football season.
FAQ Answered
First, remember that before 1992, 22 teams played in the Premier League but later reduced to 20. The main reason for this is to promote development and excellence at the club and international level.
So, in essence, the reason why there are 38 Premier League games is that 20 teams now compete in the league instead of 22.
As explained above, each team plays 19 other teams twice (home and away), hence 19 X 2 = 38.
Simple. 10 fixtures per week multiplied by 38 match days. 10 X 38 = 380. See our explanation above for a breakdown.
In an unreal situation where a Premier League team, for example, plays and wins all available competition, they must have played a total of about 80 matches in an entire season.
However, no Premier League team has ever won all available trophies locally and internationally. Chelsea played the highest number of matches in a season – 69.
Conclusion
We’ve established that each Premier League team plays 38 matches and the total Premier League fixtures are 380.
10 League games per week for 38 weeks or match days = 10 X 38 = 380 total Premier League matches in a season.
Also, we pointed out that Gareth Barry has the most Premier League appearances – 653. And Chelsea played the most matches in a season – 69 matches in the 2012/13 season.
There is no doubt that the Premier League is a tough league to play in because the schedules are grueling.
Also, more international competitions like the UEFA Nations League, Finalissima, etc, are not helping players get the needed rest. This is one of the reasons why players are now having heart issues more often in recent times.
Further Reading:
- PFA Young Players of Season Back-to-Back Winners
- The Meaning of Undisclosed Fee In Football
- North London Derby Stats In Detail
- Arsenal Invincibles Stats In Detail
- Why Manchester United Chose EtH Over Pochettino
