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The English Premier League will resume play with Matchday 8 following the suspension of Matchday 7 due to Queen Elizabeth II’s death. Seven of the 10 fixtures will be played, while three will be postponed due to events surrounding the Queen’s funeral.
The #PL will resume this weekend after a pause to the season as a mark of respect following the passing of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.
— Premier League (@premierleague) September 12, 2022
Seven of the 10 Matchweek 8 fixtures will be played, with three postponed due to events surrounding The Queen’s funeral.
The Chelsea-Liverpool, Leeds-Manchester United and Brighton-Crystal Palace fixtures will not take place on Matchday 8. The Brighton-Palace fixture was already set to be postponed due to a rail strike.
It was believed the traditional mourning period under Operation Unicorn, which occurs if the Queen passes away in Scotland, is 10 days. In theory, this would have wiped out all the fixtures for Matchday 8. Given the potential scheduling constraints with the World Cup taking place in November, the league has decided to go ahead with play aside from fixtures which will impact events surrounding the monarchy.
Through six matches, Arsenal sit at the top of the table with 15 points. Manchester City and Tottenham are tied for second with 14 points each, while Brighton has been the early surprise this season with 13 points through six matches.