Later start date in August for 2021/22 Irish Premiership season

The date has been agreed by the 12 participating clubs and agreement was reached following feedback from Premiership managers through a recent forum meeting.

The Northern Ireland Football League also confirmed that the Championship will begin on Saturday, August 8.

Normally, the Irish Premiership commences in early August, but the schedule was disrupted this season by Covid-19 restrictions.

The current season did not start until the middle of October and the campaign is set to conclude on Saturday, May 29.

The European play-off semi-finals and final are provisionally scheduled for June 4 and 7.

No matches have been played in the Championship and Premier Intermediate League since the initial outbreak of coronavirus in March 2020.

A start date for next season’s Premier Intermediate League will be confirmed “once clarification is sought on dates of other non-NIFL competitions”.

A message from the Editor:

Thank you for reading this story on our website. While I have your attention, I also have an important request to make of you.

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our advertisers - and consequently the revenue we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you taking out a digital subscription.

Subscribe to newsletter.co.uk and enjoy unlimited access to the best Northern Irish and UK news and information online and on our app. With a digital subscription, you can read more than five articles, see fewer ads, enjoy faster load times, and get access to exclusive newsletters and content. To subscribe, click here.

Our journalism costs money and we rely on advertising, print and digital revenues to help to support them. By supporting us, we are able to support you in providing trusted, fact-checked content for this website.

Thank you,

Alistair Bushe

Editor