As the end of summer approaches, the eyes of all football fans are on the start of the 2025 European leagues. The 2025–2026 season comes with a few important changes in dates and schedules. The start time for the 2025 English Premier League and the 2025 La Liga is both on August 15 and continues until May 24, 2026.

The French league also starts at about the same time. The German Bundesliga begins a bit later, on August 22, and Italy’s Serie A starts one day after that, on August 23. In this article, we review the exact start dates of each league and offer key sports betting tips. This synchronization in starting times has created excitement among fans and has a big impact on team preparations and media scheduling, setting the stage for a new season full of competition and excitement.

Full Table of 2025–2026 European League Start Dates

The new season of the 2025 European leagues is about to begin, and fans are eagerly waiting for the return of the competitions. Each league has a specific starting date, and some of the opening matches will be very exciting. Below you can find the full table of the 2025–2026 European league start dates:

LeagueStart DateNotesEnglish Premier LeagueAugust 15, 2025Starting with the match Liverpool vs. BournemouthLigue 1 (France)August 15, 2025Opening match held in ParisLa Liga (Spain)August 16, 2025Starts with several high-profile week 1 matchesBundesliga (Germany)August 22, 2025Opening with last season’s championSerie A (Italy)August 23, 2025Big teams of Italy begin competition

Comparing the Start Dates of Major Leagues

The start dates of the major European leagues in the 2025–2026 season vary. Leagues like the English Premier League and Spain’s La Liga usually begin in mid-August, as this timing offers a good balance between the end of preseason training, friendly matches, and coordination with the FIFA calendar. On the other hand, the German Bundesliga and Italy’s Serie A begin slightly later. This extra time is mostly due to summer holidays, weather conditions, and giving national team players more recovery time after international matches.

The FIFA calendar plays a major role in shaping these schedules. Even in 2025, when there is no major summer tournament, the timing of leagues is adjusted to allow players enough recovery time around international windows. Some leagues prefer to start earlier to reduce fixture pressure later in the season. Others start later in exchange for a longer winter break.

Thus, each league chooses a different starting time based on its own conditions, from technical priorities to climate and media planning. These differences make the start of the European football season more diverse and interesting.

Leagues That Start Earlier and the Opportunity for Early Betting

Some European leagues begin before the major leagues and this can be a good opportunity for those interested in match prediction. Romanian and Swiss leagues are among the competitions that usually begin in early or mid-July, a few weeks before major leagues like the English Premier League or La Liga kick off.

This time gap allows those analyzing and predicting results to test their strategies in real-world conditions but with less pressure, before the busy season of major leagues begins.

The Romanian league, due to the balanced level among most teams, provides a great opportunity to assess team form and test statistical models. The Swiss league also includes teams that compete in European competitions, offering valuable data on team performance under different conditions. Since these leagues start earlier, the level of team readiness and the impact of summer transfers become clear more quickly. This helps improve the accuracy of predictions for the bigger leagues later on.

In fact, these leagues can serve as a testing phase for users. During this period, one can identify weaknesses in their prediction methods and enter the main European season with more confidence.

Key Betting Tips for the First Weeks of the Season

The first weeks of any football season are always full of excitement and somewhat unpredictable. Teams are just returning from vacation, their lineups have changed, and things are still settling. For betting during this period, the first tip is to carefully watch the preseason matches. Even if the results aren't important, you can see which lineup the coach is relying on, how well the players are coordinated, and the team's playing style.

The next topic is new signings. Sometimes a new player can have a big impact from the very first week and improve the team, but sometimes it takes a few weeks for them to adapt to their new teammates. Therefore, you shouldn't just look at the player’s name but see how well they fit into the coach’s system and the team's style.

Newly promoted teams always have an interesting story. They usually have a lot of motivation and want to prove they deserve to be at this level. That’s why they might cause surprises even against big teams in the early weeks. If you know how they performed last season and what changes they've made, you'll be able to make better predictions.

Leagues That Start Later Than Others

Unlike most European leagues that start in mid-August, the German Bundesliga and Italy’s Serie A usually begin a bit later. The German Football Federation prefers to start the 2025 Bundesliga a little later to allow players to enter competition fully prepared after a rest period.

In Italy, the delayed start of Serie A 2025 is more related to the transfer window and team preparation. Serie A clubs generally want to finalize their key signings before the season begins and complete tactical adjustments in training so they can start strong from the first week.

For betting purposes, this delayed start can be an advantage because you get more time to watch friendlies and analyze team performance during preseason. This helps ensure better-informed predictions and reduces the chances of early mistakes.

The Impact of League Start Dates on the UEFA Champions League

The start dates of the European leagues in 2025 play an important role in coordinating with the qualifying rounds of the Champions League. Teams that have to enter the competition from early rounds or play-offs often play several crucial matches even before their domestic leagues begin. For this reason, national federations try to schedule their leagues so these teams have enough time to prepare, and scheduling pressure doesn’t impact their performance.

In countries where leagues start earlier, Champions League teams usually enter the group stage with better fitness and coordination, as they’ve already played several official matches. This can help them start stronger. Conversely, in leagues that start later, teams might not yet be at their best form in their first European games—but on the other hand, the domestic schedule during those key European stages is less demanding.