England’s Premier League has agreed to introduce a winter break in a historic move to give players a rest during an increasingly crowded season, the Football Association (FA) announced Friday.
The break — which falls well short of those taken in mainland European leagues — will give the 20 Premier League teams a weekend off football in February beginning in the 2019/20 campaign.
Five matches will be played one weekend with the second batch of five the following weekend.
The FA’s part of the bargain — also agreed with the English Football League responsible for the divisions outside the Premier League — is to switch FA Cup fifth round ties to midweek in that period.
In addition they will have to be played to achieve a result with no possibility of a replay as was the case before.
“This is a significant moment for English football and one that we believe will greatly benefit both club and country,” said FA chief executive Martin Glenn.
“It’s no secret that we have a very congested fixture calendar and over recent years we have been working with the whole game to find a solution.
“Today’s announcement proves that football can come together for the good of the game.”