Christmas schedule 2022: What’s on the TV for sports fans?
If the Christmas drinks are already starting to run out and you’re beginning to scroll through the TV guide to see what’s worth watching, have a read of our Christmas sporting schedule to get yourself in the mood for a stellar week of action.
23 December
Rugby: London Irish and Saracens clash in the London derby tomorrow night with both sides looking to earn a win now that the Premiership is back (BT Sport 1, 7pm). Elsewhere Sale Sharks travel to Newcastle Falcons in the northern derby (Premiership Rugby TV, 7:45pm)
US Sport: NFL outfit the Jets head to the Jaguars (Sky Sports Main Event, 12am) in the early hours.
Darts: The World Championship Darts continues with two sessions (Sky Sports Main Event from 12pm) before a three-day Christmas break.
Cricket: Melbourne Stars take on the Perth Scorchers before Brisbane Heat host the Adelaide Strikers (Sky Sports Main Event from 4:30am) in the Australian Big Bash T20 league.
24 December – Christmas Eve
Rugby: Gloucester Rugby travel to Leicester Tigers in what will be the East Midlands club’s first match without former head coach Steve Borthwick (BT Sport 1, 2:30pm). Bath travel to Exeter for a West Country derby (Premiership Rugby TV, 3pm).
US Sports: Brooklyn head to the Bucks in the NBA (Sky Sports main Event, 12:30am). The red-hot Bengals then travel to the Patriots and the Eagles play the Cowboys in the NFL (Sky Sports Main Event from 5pm).
Cricket: Hobart hurricanes host the Melbourne Rebels in the Big Bash (Sky Sports Main Event, 6am).
Horse Racing: Racing from Hong Kong gets underway early (Sky Sports Racing, 6am).
25 December – Christmas Day
Cricket: Australia take on South Africa in their traditional Boxing Day Test. Given the time difference, the second Test of the series gets underway on Christmas Day evening in the UK. Australia won the opener by six wickets and the Proteas will be aiming to level the series at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. (BT Sport 1, 11:30pm).
US Sports: The Las Vegas Raiders head to Pittsburgh to take on the Steelers (Sky Sports Main Event, 1:20am) in the final match of the Christmas Eve triple header. The Green Bay Packers travel to the Miami Dolphins (Sky Sports Main Event, 5:30pm) before the Denver Broncos head to LA to take on the Rams (Sky Sports Main Event, 9:15pm) in the evening. Enjoy a triple-header of NBA action as New York host Philadelphia, the Lakers head to Dallas and Boston travel to Milwaukee (Sky Sports Mix from 5pm).
26 December – Boxing Day
Football: The Premier League returns after its hiatus for a Boxing Day bonanza. Brentford and Tottenham have the honour of opening up the day in the top flight with four 3pm games to follow – Aston Villa versus Liverpool is the 5:30pm kick-off and precedes Arsenal versus West Ham (Prime Video from 12pm). Championship football (Sky Sports from 12pm) also continues on Boxing Day.
Cricket: Pakistan will look to recover from their 3-0 whitewash at the hands of England in their opening Test against New Zealand (Sky Sports Main Event, 6am) while the Big Bash continues with Perth versus Adelaide (Sky Sports Cricket, 12pm). The Australia versus South Africa Test continues (BT Sport 1, 11:30pm).
US Sports: The Buccaneers take on the Cardinals in the NFL (Sky Sports Main Event, 1:10am) while the NBA continues, starting with the Warriors, in the early hours (Sky Sports Football, 1am).
Horse Racing: The last major race of the year – the King George VI – gets underway in the early afternoon at Kempton Park (ITV1 from 12:30pm, feature race 2:30pm). Bravemansgame heads up the nine-horse card but the horse part-owned by Sir Alex Ferguson, Hitman, has a chance.
Rugby: The Dragons face Cardiff in the Welsh derby in the United Rugby Championship (Free-to-air on the BBC Sport website).
27 December
Football: Chelsea host Bournemouth and Manchester United play Nottingham Forest (Prime Video from 5pm) as football’s return sees two matches on Tuesday. EFL football continues (Sky Sports Football from 12pm) with four games back-to-back.
Cricket: The Pakistan versus New Zealand Test continues (Sky Sports Cricket, 6am). The Australia versus South Africa Test continues (BT Sport 1, 11:30pm).
Rugby: Harlequins may have postponed their Big Game due to rail strikes but the London club are still putting on their double-hearer alongside the women’s team at the Stoop (BT Sport 1 from 1pm).
US Sports: The Colts host the Chargers (Sky Sports Main Event, 1am) in the NFL with the home side looking to improve on their 4-9 record and the Chargers aiming to finish the season with a positive win rate.
Darts: The World Championship Darts returns after a three-day Christmas break. Split into two sessions (12:30pm and 7pm), some of the big names of the sport – such as Gerwyn Price – are set to be in action (Sky Sports Main Event from 12pm).
28 December
Football: Leeds United host Manchester City in the final match of the upcoming Premier League round (Prime Video, 7:30pm) while Ligiue 1 returns (BT Sport 1 from 2pm) as Troyes host Nantes before Monaco are in action.
Cricket: The Pakistan versus New Zealand Test continues (Sky Sports Cricket, 6am). The Australia versus South Africa Test continues (BT Sport 1, 11:30pm). The Sydney Sixers take on the Melbourne Renegades in the Big Bash (Sky Sports Mix, 8:15am).
Darts: The World Championship Darts continues with two sessions (Sky Sports Main Event from 12pm).
29 December
Football: The Championship has eight matches taking place with QPR versus Luton and Blackpool versus Sheffield United on TV (Sky Sports Football from 6pm – the other six are on the red button).
Cricket: The Pakistan versus New Zealand Test continues (Sky Sports Cricket, 6am). The Australia versus South Africa Test continues should the match reach the fifth day (BT Sport 1, 11:30pm). Brisbane Heat face Sydney Thunder in the Big Bash before the Perth Scorchers take on the Melbourne Stars (Sky Sports Mix from 7:05am).
Darts: The World Championship Darts continues with two sessions (Sky Sports Main Event from 12pm).
30 December
Football: Liverpool take on Leicester City (Sky Sports Football, 7:30pm) in the Premier League as the Reds look to close the gap to the top four. Four Championship matches are taking place, too, with the likes of Watford and Norwich in action (Sky Sports Football red button from 7:45pm).
Rugby: Sale Sharks face Leicester Tigers in the Gallagher Premiership (BT Sport 1, 7:45pm) as Leicester continue life without former head coach Steve Borthwick.
Cricket: The Pakistan versus New Zealand Test continues (Sky Sports Cricket, 6am) should it reach the final day. Melbourne Renegades face the Sydney Sixers in the Big Bash (Sky Sports Mix, 7:30am).
Darts: The World Championship Darts continues with two sessions (Sky Sports Main Event from 12pm) before the quarter-finals begin on 1 January.
US Sports: The Cowboys take on the Titans in the NFL (Sky Sports Main Event, 12am).
31 December – New Year’s Eve
Football: Manchester United travel to Wolves in the early Premier League kick-off (BT Sport 1, 12pm) before Brighton host Arsenal (Sky Sports Football, 4:30pm) in the final game of the calendar year.
Rugby: English rugby’s newest rivals Saracens and Exeter face off while Northampton play Harlequins at the same time (BT Sport, 3pm – all other Premiership games are available on Premiership Rugby TV).
Cricket: Sydney Thunder play Hobart Hurricanes before Adelaide Strikers take on the Melbourne Stars in the Big Bash (Sky Sports Mix from 4am).