Why there is no Serie A on Boxing Day

While some audiences are treated to a full round of fixtures on December 26, there will be no Serie A matches on Boxing Day, which has been the case for the last six years.

December 26, St. Stephen’s Day, is a national holiday in Italy, like it is in many other nations across Europe, which is part of the reason why there is no football being played on Boxing Day.

Serie A had briefly experimented with playing football over the festive period, in 2017 and 2018, but later reverted to the old format.

There was a Coppa Italia quarter-final fixture between Lazio and Fiorentina on December 26 during the 2017-18 season, and then Serie A matches in the 2018-19 season, including Frosinone 0-0 Milan, Bologna 0-2 Lazio and Inter 1-0 Napoli. 

When will Serie A action return in 2024-25? 

A full round of Serie A fixtures will be played between December 28 and December 30, 2024.

Serie A action resumes with Parma-Monza and Empoli-Genoa at 14.00 GMT on December 28, and will be followed up by Cagliari-Inter at 17.00 GMT and Lazio-Atalanta at 20.00 GMT.

Udinese-Torino, Napoli-Venezia, Juventus-Fiorentina and Milan-Roma will all take place on December 29.

The 18th round of 2024-25 fixtures will be completed with Como-Lecce and Bologna-Verona on December 30.