Football Trips England: 5 unforgettable Opening Days in the Premier League

Just three days to go until the 2025/26 Premier League season kicks off – here's a look at five truths and five legendary matches from the “Opening Day” in England’s top flight.

No, even after 23 years of following the Premier League, I still don’t understand some of the rankings out there.

In 2024, the portal GivemeSport ranked Manchester United’s 3-0 opening win away at FC Wimbledon in 1996 only 10th among the greatest Opening Day games of all time.

But in England, you can’t ignore Sir David Beckham – especially not after his midfield strike against “The Dons”. In my opinion, that deserves at least fifth place.

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“One of my heroes was Eric Cantona,” said the former England captain later about that goal, “he didn’t speak much, but after that goal he came up to me and said: David, what a goal! That was almost as good as the goal itself.”

It was one of many peculiar moments on Opening Day that are still talked about in the Premier League community. You can also see it in the Beckham documentary on Netflix. 

That goes for number four on the list too – the beginning of the greatest title story in Premier League history. Leicester City won 4-2 on the opening day against AFC Sunderland. The man who made Premier League history at Leicester, James Richard Gill, aka Jamie Vardy, scored as did Algerian Riyad Mahrez within the first 20 minutes. But Leicester’s true potential only became clear at the end of the season – with 24 Vardy goals in 36 PL matches. Unforgettable.

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Third place in this ranking goes to the very first Premier League Opening Day on 15 August 1992 – the match Arsenal FC vs. Norwich City ended 2-4. “The Canaries” stunned Arsenal in Highbury. The Londoners had entered the inaugural season as title favourites. 

Truth #1: The first goal in PL history was scored after five minutes in the match between Sheffield Wednesday and Manchester United (2:1) by Brian Deane. “The fans went absolutely crazy,” Deane recalls, “it was amazing.”
And after 33 years, the magic of the “Opening Day” remains undiminished…

Truth #2: Newcastle United legend Alan Shearer, who turned 55 on 13 August 2025, is the all-time top scorer of the Premier League (260 goals for United and Blackburn Rovers). 

At the start of the season, the 1995 PL champion scored eight goals – only Liverpool icon Mohamed Salah scored more on Opening Day, with nine goals by 2024.

Second place goes to the Sheffield Wednesday vs. Tottenham Hotspur match (3:4) on 20 August 1994. A certain Jürgen Klinsmann made it 4-2 in his Spurs debut and won fans’ hearts with his dive celebration. “Klinsi” became the first German to be named “Footballer of the Year” in the Premier League era.

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Liverpool, as reigning champions, will host AFC Bournemouth on Opening Day 2025/26, and Anfield will be buzzing to see the league debut of national player Florian Wirtz and Frankfurt star Hugo Ekitiké.
S

triker Viktor Gyökeres could make his debut for Arsenal, while former Dortmund man Jamie Gittens may feature for Chelsea in their home opener – a derby against Community Shield winners Crystal Palace.

In my humble opinion, the undisputed number one Opening Day match is Arsenal vs. Liverpool (3:4) at the start of the 2016/17 season.
There could hardly have been a more memorable way to begin Jürgen Klopp’s first full season in charge of “The Reds.”

It was 4-1 at one point in the Emirates Stadium for the Liverpool side, with goals from Philippe Coutinho – the most expensive departure in Premier League history – Adam Lallana, and Sadio Mané. 

Truth #3: Arsenal will start the 2025 season away – in a classic matchup at Manchester United. 

This fixture has never happened on the Opening Day of a Premier League season.
Truth #4: The Emirates Stadium is well worth a football trip at the start of the Premier League. Twice – after the 3-4 loss to Liverpool and a year later with a 4-3 win against Leicester – it hosted some of the highest-scoring Opening Day games.

Truth #5 about the “Opening Day”: The top starter in Premier League openers is Manchester United. No team has collected more points (70) or wins (22) in Opening Day matches than the “Red Devils.”

Last but not least: No player has appeared on an Opening Day more often than James “Milo” Milner (formerly of Aston Villa, Manchester City, Liverpool). The Premier League’s record appearance holder played his 23rd Opening Day match on 17 August 2024.