Match

Portsmouth make special request to EFL ahead of Championship fixtures release

Dan Godfrey
Dan Godfrey

Dan is a sports writer and broadcaster, who wrote for Breaking Media Limited's club sites including Pompey News between May 2024 and May 2025. Graduating from the University of Huddersfield in 2018 with First Class Honours in Sports Journalism, Dan has worked with several EFL clubs, as well as with BBC Radio, talkSPORT and TNT Sports. He previously resided in Sydney, Australia, where he continued his career as a freelancer in various sports. Dan was born and raised in Portsmouth, comes from a Pompey-supporting family, and was in attendance at both of the club's FA Cup finals in 2008 and 2010.

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BBC broadcaster Andrew Moon has revealed Portsmouth have made a request to the EFL regarding their Championship fixtures.

Posting on X [18 June], Moon says the club have asked the EFL to hand them an away fixture to kick off their 2024-25 Championship season, though this will be at the discretion of the league.

Portsmouth will discover their league fixtures for the coming year on 26 June at 9am, and wish to play away first to allow more time for redevelopment work on Fratton Park to be completed.

Portsmouth wish to start season away, but EFL's call

Moon's social media post was part of a discussion with Pompey supporters regarding any hints as to where John Mousinho's team will begin their league campaign.

Works on Fratton Park - namely the construction of a new TV gantry - are the primary reason why the club wish to have an extra week before hosting a Championship match.

The Premier League fixtures have already been released, with rivals Southampton learning that they will begin their league season on 17 June away from home - usually implying Portsmouth will be at home.

Pompey begin a week earlier on 10 June, and this may mean the Blues do in fact start away from home next season and would see the club's wish granted.

Previous instances of this have included when Sunderland wished to begin away from home in the 2022-23 season following concerts at the Stadium of Light the previous summer, but the EFL turned out to pit them at home to Coventry City for their 31 July opener.

Everton this week had a request granted to play their final home game at Goodison Park on the penultimate weekend of the Premier League weekend this coming season.

In other Portsmouth news, Mousinho has shared what he expects from Connor Ogilvie in his first-ever season at Championship level.

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Portsmouth
Andrew Moon
EFL
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