Sporting Calendar 2023: The Key Event Dates to be Aware of
The new year is with us, and 2023 promises another great year of sport. This article looks at the most popular sports and the key dates for your diaries. So whether you are a football fan, an F1 enthusiast or a darts lover, join us as we highlight the important dates throughout the year.
Soccer – 2023 Key Dates
Soccer betting fans have a lot to look forward to in 2023. The domestic cup competitions are at the business end of things, as are the European competitions. The Premier League is also unusually wide open, with just nine points separating Arsenal at the top of the table with Manchester United in fourth, the last Champions League spot. As many of the top teams are scheduled to play each other soon, it could be the closest race in many years.
Carabao Cup 2023 Dates
Although the EFL Cup is widely regarded as the least significant of the three prominent domestic honours (alongside the FA Cup and the Premier League), it has enjoyed a resurgence in recent years, partly due to the ‘bigger clubs’ taking it more seriously.
The current holders, Liverpool, have won the cup the most times (nine), and their win in the 2022 final ended a sequence of four wins for Manchester City. The last time that Manchester City, Manchester United, Chelsea or Liverpool didn’t win the trophy was in 2013 when Swansea City beat Bradford City 5-0 in the final.
This year the semi-finals are over two legs, but during the Covid crisis, the semi-final took place over one leg.
Carabao Cup 2023 dates –
Semi-Finals – January 23 and January 30, 2023.
The final of 2023 takes place at Wembley Stadium on Sunday, Feb 26.
Kick-off time is to be confirmed but will likely be at the same time as last year, which was 4.30 pm.
FA Cup 2023 Dates
The FA Cup may not have the prestige it used to command, but it is still the major cup competition in England and a vital source of income for clubs in the lower leagues who dream of getting an away tie at one of the big clubs. In addition, the magic of the FA Cup is legendary, and games are broadcast globally.
Arsenal top the FA Cup winners list with 14 wins, two ahead of Manchester United with 12. The current holders are Liverpool, who completed a domestic cup double last season. In the last decade, the ‘big six’ have dominated the tournament with four Arsenal wins, a Chelsea win, a Manchester United win, and a Manchester City win. However, Leicester City defied the odds and won their first ever in the 2020-21 season.
Other notable winners include Wigan Athletic (2013), Portsmouth (2008), Tottenham (1991), Wimbledon (1988) and Everton (1984).
FA Cup 2023 dates;
Fourth Round Proper – Saturday, Jan 28 2023
The draw has been made for the #EmiratesFACup fourth round! 🤩
— Emirates FA Cup (@EmiratesFACup) January 8, 2023
Fifth Round Proper – Wednesday, Mar 1 2023
Quarter-Final – Saturday, Mar 18 2023
Semi-Final – Saturday, Apr 22 2023
Final – Saturday, Jun 3 2023
Premier League 2022/2023 Key Dates
The 2022 World Cup, whilst an enjoyable tournament, has caused havoc with the scheduling of England’s top-flight league. For the first time, the World Cup was held in the winter to avoid the searing heat in Qatar, which meant a temporary halt to the Premier League, which started on Aug 6 2022.
Match round 16 was the last set of games over the weekend of 12-13 November before a break which lasted until Boxing Day (Dec 26).
The last day of the current campaign will be May 28 2023, and as usual, all games will kick off at the same time.
Another date worth highlighting is Thursday, Jun 16 2022, as the Premier League fixtures for the 2023/24 season will be released on this date.
European Cup Competitions – The Dates to Know
The European cups also continue this year, with the three competitions (Champions League, Europa League and the Europa Conference League) entering the latter stages.
European Cup Competitions – Champions League 2023
Tottenham, Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester City are still in the competition at the Round of 16 stage.
Tottenham faces AC Milan and plays the away let on Tuesday, Feb 14, with the return on Wednesday, Mar 8.
Chelsea plays Dortmund. The away leg is on Wednesday, Feb 15, with the reverse fixture at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday, Mar 7.
Liverpool faces Spanish giants Real Madrid. The first leg is at Anfield on Tuesday, Feb 21, with the trip to Spain scheduled on Wednesday, Mar 15.
Manchester City will play RB Leipzig. The first leg in Germany will take place on Wednesday, Feb 22. The return leg at the Etihad will be on Tuesday, Mar 14.
Champions League round of 16 draw pic.twitter.com/H1U9GdS9Os
— Troll Football (@TrollFootball) November 7, 2022
Key dates; Round of 16: 14/15/21/22 February & 7/8/14/Mar 15 2023.
Quarter-finals: 11/12 & 18/19 April 2023.
Semi-finals: 9/10 & 16/17 May 2023.
Final: Jun 10 2023.
European Cup Competitions – Europa League
In the Europa League and the Europa Conference League, there is an extra round of games in which the teams that finished second in their group play a team that finished third in the Champions League. From an English point of view, this means Manchester United have a mouth-watering clash with Barcelona to come. Although Arsenal will avoid this stage as they won their group, they will be back in action in the Round of 16.
Europa League key dates;
Knockout round play-offs: 16 & 23 February.
Round of 16: 9 & 16 March 2023.
Quarter-finals: 13 & 20 April 2023.
Semi-finals: 11 & 18 May 2023.
Final: May 31 2023.
The Europa Conference League also has an additional round involving teams that finished third in the Europa League dropping into the Europa Conference League. West Ham United avoided this stage thanks to topping their group.
Europa Conference League key dates;
Knockout round play-offs: 16 & 23 February 2023.
Round of 16: 9 & 16 March 2023.
Quarter-finals: 13 & 20 April 2023.
Semi-finals: 11 & 18 May 2023.
Final: Jun 7 2023.
2023 F1 Calendar – Races and Dates
Formula 1 action will resume in Bahrain on Mar 5 and conclude in Abu Dhabi on Nov 26. Pre-season will commence in Bahrain in February (23-25). There is the traditional August break this year, although the race in the Netherlands starts at the end of August (27).
| F1 2023 Race Calendar | ||
|---|---|---|
| Race Date | Grand Prix | Venue |
| February 23-25 | Pre-season testing | Sakhir |
| March 5 | Bahrain | Sakhir |
| March 19 | Saudi Arabia | Jeddah |
| April 2 | Australia | Melbourne |
| TBC | TBC | TBC |
| April 30 | Azerbaijan | Baku |
| May 7 | Miami | Miami |
| May 21 | Emilia Romagna | Imola |
| May 28 | Monaco | Monaco |
| June 4 | Spain | Barcelona |
| June 18 | Canada | Montreal |
| July 2 | Austria | Spielberg |
| July 9 | UK | Silverstone |
| July 23 | Hungary | Budapest |
| July 30 | Belgium | Spa |
| August 27 | Netherlands | Zandvoort |
| September 3 | Italy | Monza |
| September 17 | Singapore | Singapore |
| September 24 | Japan | Suzuka |
| October 8 | Qatar | Lusail |
| October 22 | USA | Austin |
| October 29 | Mexico | Mexico City |
| November 5 | Brazil | Sao Paulo |
| November 18 | Las Vegas | Las Vegas |
| November 26 | Abu Dhabi | Yas Marina |
Darts 2023 Calendar
Darts fans, fresh from witnessing one of the finest games of darts in living memory between Michael Smith and Michael van Gerwen in the 2022/23 PDC World Darts Championship, don’t have long to wait for more action as the Cazoo Masters starts this month. Below we highlight some of the major darts events taking place this year.
January – 27th – 29th – Cazoo Masters, Milton Keynes (ITV4)
May – 25th – Cazoo Premier League Play-Offs, London (Sky Sports)
June – 15th – 18th – Cazoo World Cup of Darts, Frankfurt (Sky Sports)
July – 15th – 23rd – World Matchplay, Blackpool (Sky Sports)
October – – 2nd – 8th – BoyleSports World Grand Prix, Leicester (Sky Sports)
November – 11th – 19th – Cazoo Grand Slam of Darts, Wolverhampton (Sky Sports)
The grand finale, the PDC World Darts Championship, should take place between Dec 15 – Jan 3 at Alexandra Palace. However, this hasn’t been confirmed yet. Sky Sports will be broadcasting this event.
