Boxing Day a thrill for Philly English Premier League fans

PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Here in America we have Thanksgiving football, or Christmas basketball, and across the pond, football—um, soccer—fans look forward to the day after Christmas.

Sixteen Premier League teams are capturing the attention of the footballing world on Boxing Day 2024—including an enthusiastic and growing fan base in Philadelphia—with eight matches. The Premier League comprises the top tier of English football teams.

Duncan Riegler of Havertown took in the morning action with his dad and sister at Fadó Irish Pub (1500 Locust Street), and his beloved Chelsea Football Club side entered Boxing Day in second place after finishing sixth last year.

“Every day I wake up with a smile on my face. It’s an unbelievable surprise,” Riegler said.

His dad Mike got to watch his favorite team, fifth-place Newcastle United F.C., get a big 3-0 win over Aston Villa F.C. Mike says watching the day’s fixtures is a yearly family tradition.

“Top three days of the year, yeah. We watch soccer all day long. Wake up early and do it.”

He says the best part is spending the morning with his kids.

“Fantastic. You know, wouldn’t be Christmas without it, probably, right? Since they’ve been able to come out and be 21 and be legal to go to places,” Mike said.

Elsewhere, 11-year-old Asher comes from a soccer-loving family. He says he has been playing the game since he was 2.

“I just think it’s a super-fun game to play, and every game has meaning,” Asher said.

Arsenal F.C., whom Temple grad Connor Love supports, didn’t play on Thursday, but he was happy to take in the footy all the same.

“You know, I enjoy watching as many games as possible. And there’s no better way to do that than Boxing Day. You’ve still got that festive spirit going, so it’s nice to get up the day after Christmas and celebrate with a little more soccer.”

Paul Golden was watching with his friends, thankful to have the day off after being stuck at work on Boxing Day for the last few years.

“Yeah, usually we try to hit an Irish pub,” Golden said. “We’ll bop around the city a little bit, too, and hit different pubs. And it’s growing in Philadelphia. You can see the sport starting to grow.”

Riegler says he, too, has noticed support for the sport picking up steam in the States over the last few years.

“Premier League fandom in America—and especially Philly, ’cause Philly’s a good soccer town—it’s pretty strong, I think. Very strong. And it’s only gonna keep getting stronger.”