Premier League predictions: Take on an Athletic writer in our new weekly game

The article describes how summer football coverage has changed, shifting from being largely football-free in the past (except during major tournaments) to a near non-stop experience with constant tournaments and transfer market activity.

It announces the start date of the Premier League 2025-26 season (Friday, August 15), highlighting key opening fixtures: Liverpool vs Bournemouth, Aston Villa vs Newcastle United, Manchester United vs Arsenal, and Leeds United vs Everton.

The article introduces a new weekly Premier League predictions game hosted by The Athletic. Each week, a different subscriber will predict the scorelines for all matches. These predictions will be compared against the author's picks, an algorithm-based model, and a child's predictions. The author humorously questions if the setup is designed to embarrass them.

Subscribers interested in being selected as a weekly predictor must read the terms and submit their name, email address, location, and supported club via a provided Google Form or direct link. Participation requires acceptance of the Reader Submission Terms.

Important data handling terms are specified: individual responses (display name and email) will be permanently deleted by May 24, 2026, with an option to request earlier deletion via email. Contact emails for questions (plpredictions@theathletic.com) and privacy requests (privacy@theathletic.com) are provided.