Contents
Early season highlights & statistics
Premier League
Liverpool 1-0 Arsenal: In a tight match at Anfield on 31 August 2025, a moment of brilliance from Dominik Szoboszlai decided the game. Playing out of position at right-back, he scored a stunning free-kick in the 83rd minute, giving Liverpool a 1–0 win. It was their first home victory over Arsenal since 2012. The strike gave Liverpool a perfect start to the season with nine points from three games. Mikel Arteta, Arsenal’s manager, said the game was decided by a “magic moment,” while Arsenal’s goalkeeper, David Raya, admitted he struggled to adjust to the new Puma Premier League ball.
Erling Haaland keeps rolling: Although Manchester City lost 2–1 to Brighton, Erling Haaland continued his amazing scoring streak. He has now scored 88 Premier League goals in his first 100 matches, setting a new all-time record.
Arsenal crush Leeds: Arsenal responded to their loss with a brilliant 5-0 win over Leeds United on 23 August. New signing Viktor Gyökeres scored twice on his debut, and Jurrien Timber also scored two goals. Bukayo Saka also scored before leaving the game with an injury.
Ouattara makes an immediate impact: In West London, Brentford got their first points of the season with a 1–0 win over Aston Villa. The only goal of the match was scored by their record-signing Dango Ouattara, who scored just 12 minutes into his first league appearance for the club.
La Liga
Rayo Vallecano 3–1 Girona: La Liga’s opening day had a chaotic and memorable debut. Girona’s goalkeeper, Paulo Gazzaniga, made a terrible slip, mishandling a back-pass and putting the ball straight into his own net. Things got worse, as he conceded again before half-time and was eventually sent off. Rayo capitalised on the mistakes and secured a 3–1 victory.
Barcelona crush Mallorca and debut Marcus Rashford: Defending champions Barcelona opened their season with a dominant 3–0 away victory over Mallorca. Early send-offs left Mallorca with just nine men. Barcelona capitalised with goals from Raphinha and Ferran Torres. In a historic moment, new signing Marcus Rashford made his competitive debut for Barcelona, marking the first appearance by an English player since Gary Lineker in 1989. Lamine Yamal sealed the win with a goal in added time.
Real Madrid under Xabi Alonso: a seamless start: New coach Xabi Alonso made a statement with a perfect start, winning La Liga Manager of the Month for August. Real Madrid won all three of their opening matches, scoring six goals and conceding just one.
– 19 August: Mbappé scored a second-half penalty to beat Osasuna 1–0 in their opener.
– 24 August: A comfortable 3–0 win over Oviedo, with Mbappé scoring twice and Vinícius Júnior adding a goal.
– 30 August: They turned it around in style with a 2–1 comeback win against Mallorca, with strikes from Arda Güler and Vinícius.
Serie A
The 2025–26 Serie A season officially began on 23 August 2025. The opening weekend had some big matches, including Napoli vs Sassuolo, Juventus vs Parma, and AC Milan vs Cremonese. The prestigious Derby d’Italia (Juventus vs Inter) is scheduled for 13 September.
Napoli begins with flair: Defending champions Napoli made a statement in their first match with a 2–0 win over Sassuolo. The goals were scored by Scott McTominay and Kevin De Bruyne. This win extended their unbeaten run from last season to 13 matches, the longest streak in Europe’s top five leagues.
Inter Milan dismembers Torino: Inter Milan started the season with a bang, beating Torino 5–0. Marcus Thuram scored twice, while Alessandro Bastoni, Lautaro Martínez, and Ange-Yoan Bonny also scored. This was Inter’s most convincing season opener since 1961.
Juventus show balance, slip up slightly: Juventus had a 2–0 win over Parma, dominating possession and shots. Kenan Yıldız had a great debut with two assists, Jonathan David scored, and Dusan Vlahović also got a goal. The team then edged Genoa 1–0, with Vlahović coming off the bench to score from a corner.
Innovative move: Serie A is set to improve its match coverage with referee-mounted body cameras. These were first tested during a match between Juventus and Inter. The high-resolution footage will be used by the Video Assistant Referee (VAR), and some of it will be broadcast live, which is a pioneering step for the league.
Bundesliga
The 2025–26 Bundesliga season officially began on 22 August 2025, with reigning champions Bayern Munich hosting RB Leipzig. Bayern delivered a statement 6–0 victory, with a fantastic performance from Harry Kane, who scored a hat-trick in just 14 minutes. Michael Olise added two goals, and new signing Luis Díaz scored on his Bundesliga debut.
– Kane’s rapid-fire treble was his eighth Bundesliga hat-trick, but he achieved it in 256 fewer games than it took him to get eight hat-tricks in the Premier League.
– Manager Vincent Kompany said the team’s intention was to “send a statement from the first game at home,” and they certainly did.
Ligue 1
PSG launch their title defence with grit: On 15 August, Paris Saint-Germain narrowly beat Nantes 1–0. Despite having a lot of possession, PSG struggled to create clear-cut opportunities until Vitinha’s powerful long-range shot was deflected into the net in the 67th minute. The win was a tough one, but it showed the grit and determination needed to win a title.
João Neves steals the show in goal-fest vs. Toulouse: In a thrilling match on 30 August, João Neves scored a brilliant hat-trick as PSG beat Toulouse 6–3 away from home. He scored with an overhead kick, followed by two more goals before the 15th minute. He then sealed the victory with another powerful finish in the 78th minute. Goalkeeper Lucas Chevalier made two crucial penalty saves to redeem an early mistake.
Marseille bounce back in style: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang led Olympique de Marseille’s resurgence with two goals in their 5–2 win over Paris FC on 23 August. He also won the first penalty, which was scored by Mason Greenwood. After Paris FC fought back to level the score at 2-2, Marseille pulled away with goals from Bilal Nadir, Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, and a late goal from Robinio Vaz.
PSG showcasing European mentality, but Ligue 1 rivals adapt: Before their match against Toulouse, manager Luis Enrique said that his team’s recent European success hasn’t changed the competitive nature of Ligue 1. He noted that opponents are still setting up with compact defences against them. Despite their close matches, PSG have taken maximum points from their opening three games.
Eredivisie
The 2025–26 Eredivisie season kicked off on 8 August, with defending champions PSV Eindhoven beating Go Ahead Eagles 2–1 to lift the Johan Cruyff Shield. The match was played in front of a crowd of 34,500 at the Philips Stadion and was a great start to PSV’s league campaign.
Historic fixtures & big openers: The opening matchday featured Fortuna Sittard vs Go Ahead Eagles. Giants like Feyenoord began their run at home against NAC Breda, PSV took on Sparta Rotterdam, and Ajax faced newly-promoted Telstar.
Sergiño Dest shines early for PSV: On matchday 2, Sergiño Dest was a standout player for PSV. His attacking play led to an own goal and a key assist in the win against Twente. With an 87% passing accuracy, he showed his growing importance to the team in both defence and attack.
Player movements & relegation drama
– Jorrel Hato, Ajax’s talented 19-year-old defender and Johan Cruyff Talent of the Year, made a big-money move to Chelsea in early August. His departure marks a major shift in Ajax’s defensive structure.
– Meanwhile, Ajdin Hrustic returned to Heracles Almelo on a one-year deal, aiming to rediscover his form and earn a place back in the national team.
League landscape: The league has a classic but fresh feel. PSV and Feyenoord are still the title favourites, but Ajax looks a bit unpredictable. Mid-table sides are stronger and more capable of producing surprise results.
Top scorers & standings (early indicators): By late August, Joey Veerman of PSV was among the early top scorers. Utrecht’s match against Heracles had a season-high crowd of 21,875 and resulted in a dominant 4-0 victory for Utrecht.
Managerial changes across Europe
Europe’s top leagues have had a lot of managerial changes this season, which has added to the excitement and unpredictability.
Premier League
– Nottingham Forest made a big change, letting go of Nuno Espírito Santo and quickly appointing Ange Postecoglou. Postecoglou, known for his dynamic, attacking style, takes over a team that finished a respectable seventh last season.
– Tottenham appointed Thomas Frank, the former Brentford manager, following the sacking of Ange Postecoglou earlier in the summer.
– Brentford promoted their former set-piece coach, Keith Andrews, to head coach, giving him his first senior managerial role.
La Liga
There was a busy summer of changes, with managers like Xabi Alonso taking over at Real Madrid and Hansi Flick at Barcelona.
Serie A
A huge twelve clubs changed managers this summer, which is a big signal of a new era in the league. Key highlights include:
– Antonio Conte staying at Napoli after winning the title.
– Massimiliano Allegri returning to manage AC Milan.
– Cristian Chivu, with only a small amount of experience, taking over at Inter Milan.
– Cesc Fàbregas and Carlos Cuesta were appointed at Como and Parma respectively, with Cuesta becoming the youngest manager in the league’s history.
Bundesliga
Bayer Leverkusen made a historic move by appointing Erik ten Hag, but he was sacked after just three games, making it the shortest managerial tenure in Bundesliga history. He was replaced by Kasper Hjulmand, the former Denmark national team coach.
Ligue 1
There were fewer high-profile changes in Ligue 1 during the summer, but a notable mid-season move saw Paulo Fonseca appointed as head coach of Olympique Lyonnais.
Eredivisie
Ajax chose their former player John Heitinga to lead the team, and Heerenveen appointed Robin Veldman after the departure of Robin van Persie.
Cup competitions
UEFA Super Cup – 13 August 2025
In a dramatic game, Paris Saint-Germain came back from being two goals down against Tottenham Hotspur to win 4-3 on penalties. Goals from Micky van de Ven and Cristian Romero had given Tottenham a 2–0 lead, but PSG fought back with goals from Lee Kang-in and Gonçalo Ramos. The match ended 2–2, with PSG winning their first-ever UEFA Super Cup. Ousmane Dembélé was named Man of the Match, but he passed the honour to his teammate and debut goalkeeper Lucas Chevalier, whose saves in the shootout were pivotal.
Johan Cruyff Shield (Netherlands) – 3 August 2025
The traditional curtain-raiser for the Dutch season saw PSV Eindhoven lift the trophy with a 2–1 win over Go Ahead Eagles at the Philips Stadion in Eindhoven.
England: FA Community Shield & League Cup shock
– FA Community Shield – 10 August 2025: Crystal Palace won their first-ever Community Shield. They beat Liverpool in a penalty shootout after a 2–2 draw. Goals from Jean-Philippe Mateta and Ismaïla Sarr cancelled out strikes from Hugo Ekitiké and Jeremie Frimpong. Goalkeeper Dean Henderson was the hero, saving two spot-kicks, with Justin Devenny scoring the winning penalty.
– EFL (League) Cup – August 2025 (second round): A huge upset rocked the early rounds of the competition when Grimsby Town, a League Two side, stunned Manchester United. Grimsby won a penalty shootout 12–11 after a 2–2 draw. This loss, so early in the season, has put manager Rubén Amorim under increasing pressure.
Franz Beckenbauer Supercup: Bayern show their class
On 16 August, Bayern secured the German Supercup, which has been officially renamed in honour of Franz Beckenbauer. They defeated VfB Stuttgart 2–1 in the final, with goals from Harry Kane and Luis Díaz. Manuel Neuer was named Man of the Match after several crucial saves.
Sportmonks’s role in football leagues
Sportmonks is a great provider of football data, offering fast, reliable, and developer-friendly access to live matches, full league coverage, fixtures, line-ups, player stats, coach and referee data, betting odds, predictions, and more. It covers over 2,000 leagues, including the Premier League, La Liga, Serie A, Bundesliga, Ligue 1, and the Eredivisie. Our documentation is very well-structured and easy to use. It includes an introduction, quick-start guides, interactive examples, and detailed references, so developers can easily get data and add it to their applications.
What Sportmonks offers
– Data integration: You can easily integrate live scores, fixtures, and up-to-the-minute statistics. This ensures that the data is accurate and timely as the leagues restart.
– Advanced metrics (like xG): Sportmonks offers very detailed data, such as expected goals (xG), xG on target, non-penalty xG, set-play xG, and even expected points (xPTS). You can get all of this through the API. These metrics provide a deeper insight into outstanding matches or players, going beyond just the basic statistics.
– Analytical depth: Their blogs discuss how to use big data for strategy, scouting, and fan engagement, which fits well with your themes of tactical shifts, player debuts, and surprising performances.
Keep up with Europe’s football restart through Sportmonks
The new season across Europe’s top leagues is already producing unforgettable stories, and with Sportmonks, you can capture every moment as it happens. Our football API gives you instant access to live scores, fixtures, line-ups, player data, advanced metrics such as expected goals, and predictive insights that go far beyond the basics. Whether you are creating a media platform, building a betting tool, or developing scouting and analytics solutions, Sportmonks delivers the speed, reliability, and depth you need. Start exploring the Sportmonks Football API today and take your football coverage to the next level.
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