A winter break is coming to the Premier League.
The Football Association is set to announce a mid-season break for Premier League teams in the next fortnight, according to Sky Sports.
FA chief executive Martin Glenn has confirmed to FA councillors that a two-week break will be introduced to England’s top flight and will come into effect in the 2019-2020 season.
It’s understood that the break will be staggered with five Premier League games being played on one weekend and the other five the following weekend, allowing every club a two-week break from action.
Glenn told councillors: “We’re working closer and more collaboratively with the professional game than at any time in recent years.
“Very soon this will pay dividends with the creation of a mid-season break, which is a much-needed improvement for our clubs and England teams.”
Teams have been discouraged from using the time off from Premier League action to indulge in any lucrative tours abroad although Sky Sports has revealed that squads will be allowed to spend their breaks enjoying warm-weather training.
The break will not apply to the Championship, League One and League Two but the thinking behind giving every Premier League team a guaranteed 13 days off is that it will benefit the England national team, who will likely have qualified for Euro 2020 at that stage.
Most Premier League managers have cried out for the implementation of a winter break for years, with Manchester United’s Jose Mourinho one of the more vocal advocates.
“It shouldn’t be at Christmas because tradition demands not and tradition plays a role,” Mourinho said last year.
“The commercial point of view is also important, but I would say play the crazy Christmas period but after it has finished, give us a break. Play Boxing Day, play the 28th and the 31st or New Year’s Day. Kill our Christmas and our families’ Christmas. I agree with that, but then please let us breathe, let us recover, give the players 10 days off and then we start again.”
