Since 1871, December 26 – called Boxing Day – has been a public holiday in England. It is a day of sales but also of football, since the Premier League does not make a truce and plays throughout the holiday season. “It is a moment of sharing and cohesion”, described on franceinfo Vincent Chaudel. This sports economist explains that maintaining these matches avoids “real” economic problems and allows the Premier League “to be the only championship to be watched between Christmas and New Year’s Day”, in particular because the championships Frenchmen observe a truce.
franceinfo: Why is this Boxing Day tradition essential in the UK?
Vincent Chaudel: It is a moment of sharing and cohesion. This is the time when, between Christmas and New Year’s Day, English football takes advantage of this period of truce when people are available and they go on two to three days of matches. It is a rite, a meeting which is now established and it is also a moment that the League has been able to sell to broadcasters. In this case, this year it was Amazon that bought the bundle of matches and, of course, in the event of a postponement, it would have posed an economic problem for the League. But above all, I believe that it is a reflection of the weight of football in British society. In France, we did not hesitate to cancel the championship because of Covid-19. In England, Boris Johnson avoided this kind of decision, he who already has a problem of popularity.
If the matches had been postponed because of the Covid-19, what would have had to be done?
The broadcaster has planned this period. If the matches had not happened, we would have had to find a plan B. We see it in France, for example, with the Boxing Day of rugby. Sunday evening, we should have had Stade Toulousain – Stade Français and Canal + needs to find a plan B.
Conversely, will the maintenance of these matches, with others which are postponed in an extremely tight schedule, end up posing a problem for the Premier League championship?
Yes of course. But we saw it in 2020, the championships and the leagues have been organized. But here, we are still in a very constrained calendar because it is a special year, of the World Cup. This competition takes place in November and December. We will therefore have to finish the championships at all costs before the end of May to be able to start again in the summer and play the first part of the championship before this World Cup. This is why postponed matches pose real problems. Finally, the African Cup of Nations begins on January 9, with players like Sadio Mané or Mohamed Salah, who should be absent hoping for them to be able to return without quarantine, for example.
Is this Boxing Day in the United Kingdom also a way to highlight English football internationally? Since in France, for example, as it is the truce, football supporters can be tempted by English football?
Of course, that’s also why it’s a success. The Premier League owes much of its success to its internationalization. It is first of all natural with all the countries of the Commonwealth of Nations. Then, there is effectively this specific Boxing Day window, which allows it to be the only one to be watched between Christmas and New Years. This is a subject that makes the difference with, for example, the Bundesliga, which has had a long winter break. This is the opportunity to watch mainly English football. The Bundesliga did it. It was the first championship to resume despite the Covid-19. There was only the Bundesliga to watch and that allowed the German league to be overexposed. There is therefore a tactical dimension in this media window.