In what will hopefully be a sign of things to come, Everton will begin the 2026-27 season at home, on a Saturday, at 3pm, against Crystal Palace.
Just six of their 19 home games were on a Saturday last season, with just three at 3pm – two of which were in December. So the chance to have a (hopefully) sunny afternoon to open the campaign is most welcome.
The equivalent fixture last season saw Everton come behind to win 2-1 thanks to an Iliman Ndiaye penalty and a first Toffees goal for Jack Grealish.
It will be a first competitive match in charge of Palace for Pierre Sage, who left Lens to replace Oliver Glasner over the summer. He has some big boots to fill after Glasner led the Eagles to the FA Cup, Community Shield and the Conference League in the space of 12 months.
Travelling Toffees will also be delighted to see the first away game is Bournemouth on August bank holiday weekend. Who doesn’t like a summer trip to the seaside?
With no early international break the Toffees will host Manchester United a week later. It is likely to be moved for TV, but fingers crossed it is not a Monday night again.
A trip to Tottenham is next before newly-promoted Ipswich come to the Hill Dickinson to a relatively kind round of opening fixtures, before a three-week gap because of the new condensed international breaks.
Unlike last season, the two Merseyside derbies will be played in winter. The Toffees are home at first this time on the weekend of 28/29 November, with the return game at Anfield the weekend of 30/31st January.
The festive fixtures are also kinder. After being away twice between Christmas and New Year last time Everton are at home twice – against Sunderland on Boxing Day and Manchester City on the 30th. The first game of 2027 is also a short trip across the Pennines to Leeds.
The fixtures against the top teams are evenly spread out so there are no real nightmare runs. They host Chelsea before trips to Arsenal and Newcastle in October, while games at Manchester City and Manchester United are back-to-back in March.
Former Toffees boss Frank Lampard will return to Merseyside with his Coventry side on 7 November – though I imagine that game might be moved for TV. It will be the first league meeting between the sides since early 2001.
Everton make their first ever trip to the Coventry Building Society Arena on Saturday 16 January.
Everton’s final six fixtures are likely to involve sides with plenty to fight for. They take on Brighton at home at the end of April before a trip to Fulham in early May – another great away day at that time of year for travelling Toffees.
Hull, who are expected to battle against relegation, are next up at home, before another trip to the capital at Chelsea, where Everton haven’t won in the league since 1994.
The final home game of the season is against champions Arsenal, before rounding off the campaign with the long trip to Ipswich, who are also expected to be fighting the drop.