This weekend will, of course, be headlined by the 2026 World Cup final, but pre-season club friendlies are about to start demanding our attention.
Here, we’ll list all of the weekend’s games, while picking out a few things that could interest Fantasy Premier League (FPL) managers, even at this early stage.
THIS WEEKEND’S PRE-SEASON FRIENDLIES
Here are the ‘official’ pre-season encounters:
| DATE | KICK-OFF (BST) | MATCH | VENUE |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday 18 July | 12:30 pm | CRYSTAL PALACE v Swindon Town | Crystal Palace training ground (behind closed doors) |
| Saturday 18 July | 1:00 pm | NEWCASTLE UNITED v Darlington | Newcastle training ground (behind closed doors) |
| Saturday 18 July | 2:00 pm | Northampton Town v COVENTRY CITY | Sixfields Stadium, Northampton |
| Saturday 18 July | 2:00 pm | Dundee v EVERTON | Dens Park, Dundee |
| Saturday 18 July | 3:00 pm | Notts County v NOTTINGHAM FOREST | Meadow Lane, Nottingham |
| Saturday 18 July | 3:00 pm | York City v SUNDERLAND | LNER Community Stadium, York |
| Saturday 18 July | 4:00 pm | MANCHESTER UNITED v Wrexham | Olympic Stadium, Helsinki, Finland |
Additionally, it looks like Chelsea will have a not-so-secret friendly versus Crawley on Saturday.
There’s always the chance that other Premier League clubs are involved in undisclosed kickabouts, like Coventry and Brentford were in the last week.
NEW MANAGERS
Of the 17 teams still around from last season, seven have new managers or head coaches. That doesn’t include Michael Carrick, made permanent boss at Manchester United.
At Nottingham Forest, the appointment of Oliver Glasner surprised many. He recently said in his first press conference that he doesn’t yet know whether he’ll use a back four or wing-back system. That’s one to keep tabs on over the summer.
Also playing on Saturday is his former club Crystal Palace, who now have Pierre Sage in charge. Clues about his favourite formation and players would be appreciated, though their match with Swindon Town is happening behind closed doors. It’s the same for Xabi Alonso at Chelsea.
NEW SIGNINGS
Similarly, we may get a slight glimpse of the seven teams’ new players.
- READ MORE: FPL 2026/27 – All confirmed transfers
Some will be on a post-World Cup rest, but the likes of Hayden Hackney (Everton), Oscar Mingueza (Crystal Palace) and Andrey Santos (Manchester United) weren’t at the tournament. Andrey is included in Manchester United’s travelling squad to Finland, indeed.
A FIRST PROPER LOOK AT NEW BOYS COVENTRY
Meanwhile, Coventry City have already got their summer underway, losing to AFC Wimbledon last Saturday.
No footage of that match exists, and details were scant.
So, their trip to Northampton Town gives the FPL community a first proper look at the Premier League new boys ahead of their return to the top flight after 25 years away.
Could Frank Lampard’s side match the promotion success of Sunderland and Leeds United?
PLAYERS BACK FROM INJURY
A few players whose seasons were curtailed by injury might make an appearance on Saturday.
Fabian Schar, the main (albeit ageing) positional rival for Malick Thiaw as Newcastle United’s right-sided centre-half, is “ready to go” after six months out.
Eddie Nketiah and Cheick Doucouré have both been back in training for Crystal Palace, too. Nketiah has been out since January, like Schar, while Doucouré hasn’t featured in 18 months due to knee issues.
Jarrad Branthwaite has returned to training with Everton, too, whose stop-start campaign was finally ended in April thanks to his latest hamstring injury.
There’ll be no Benjamin Sesko for Manchester United, however, as he continues his rehabilitation from his end-of-season injury.
