British football's Boxing Day tradition has acquired a mythological reputation over the years.
Other countries might wrap themselves in blankets for a sporty hibernation and pat themselves on the back for taking care of themselves, but not here. Not us.
Here, on December 26, hordes of fans make the pilgrimage to frozen terraces, while winter lays its icy behind over the football heart.
And it is not a reluctant journey. There is genuine expectation in that dedication, an expectation of something special. A noble hope that sacrificing frozen hands and ears in the name of football will bring a greater reward.
The Ghost of Christmas Goals Past fuels the story. We are reminded of this every year That Boxing Day – that of 1963, when 66 goals were scored in ten top matches.
Boxing Day football has given us many exciting matches… but is it actually better than other dates?
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That day, Burnley defeated Manchester United 6-1, Fulham defeated Ipswich 10-2 and Blackburn recorded an 8-2 away win at West Ham.
In recent years we have seen Manchester City triumph in a 6-3 thriller over Leicester, Arsenal beat Norwich 5-0 and Bournemouth draw 3-3 against West Ham with three late goals.
Meanwhile, Liverpool have hit the net 16 times in the last four festive seasons. So much for a Christmas hangover.
It all comes down to what seems like a reasonable conclusion. Football on Boxing Day is special, right?
Right?
Well, the statistics actually suggest that while there are indeed more goals per game on Boxing Day, the difference is only a minute.
In the history of the Premier League, the team has scored an average of 2.71 goals per match, a small increase from the norm of 2.67 goals in all matches, according to Opta.
Despite the higher number of goals, there are fewer shots in the Boxing Day matches – 26.3 compared to an average of 26.5 – so you could cruelly argue that goalkeepers are too distracted by their chattering teeth!
For all its great moments, Boxing Day only gives us 0.04 more goals per match than normal
The Boxing Day in the Premier League took place in 1999, when 35 goals were scored
The chances of going through a 0-0 tie are quite rare, with only 30 of the 269 Premier League games played on Boxing Day having ended goalless.
However, the hope for a modern 1963 remake feels pretty far-fetched. The most bountiful Boxing Day of the Premier League era, that of 1999, netted us just 35 goals, just over half of the 1963 crop.
There were some crazy results in 1999 as Everton beat European-threatening Sunderland 5-0, while Manchester United and Tottenham won 4-0.
But we're still waiting for a day that comes close to 1963 on a grand scale.
Do emotions flare more intensely in the biting cold? Just a little bit more: Boxing Day gives us an average of 0.15 red cards per match, as opposed to the usual 0.14, and there are slightly more fouls.
The 2007 edition of Chelsea vs Aston Villa was a special thriller, blessed with goals and heated moments.
There were three red cards when Chelsea played Aston Villa in 2007 – and slightly more fouls are committed during Boxing Day matches
Chelsea came from 2-0 down to establish a 4-3 lead going into stoppage time, but Gareth Barry scored a penalty in the 92nd minute on a day when Zat Knight, Ricardo Carvalho and Ashley Cole were sent off.
Perhaps the statistics can give us some intriguing predictions for the coming Boxing Day.
Manchester United have the best record of any team on Boxing Day in the Premier League era, winning 21 of 27 matches and losing only twice.
In those games, United scored 71 points and conceded just 27, good for 67 points – an average of 2.48 per game.
Meanwhile, Aston Villa is quite weak in the rankings. They won just five of their 25 assignments and managed 0.84 ppg – a poor record that foreshadows their trip to Old Trafford this season.
Whichever angel is at the top of the tree on Boxing Day usually navigates it with little difficulty.
Manchester United have a brilliant record on December 26, winning 21 of 27 games
| Rank | Team | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | For | In return for | GD | Ptn | PPG | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Manchester United | 27 | 21 | 4 | 2 | 71 | 27 | 44 | 67 | 2.48 | |
| 2 | Arsenal | 25 | 16 | 7 | 2 | 47 | 20 | 27 | 55 | 2.2 | |
| 3 | Liverpool | 25 | 16 | 5 | 4 | 52 | 19 | 33 | 53 | 2.12 | |
| 4 | Tottenham | 26 | 15 | 8 | 3 | 53 | 21 | 32 | 53 | 2.04 | |
| 5 | Manchester city | 21 | 12 | 2 | 7 | 43 | 25 | 18 | 38 | 1.8 | |
| 6 | Chelsea | 28 | 13 | 9 | 6 | 46 | 34 | 12 | 48 | 1.71 | |
| 7 | Everton | 28 | 11 | 7 | 10 | 38 | 33 | 5 | 40 | 1.42 | |
| 8 | Brighton | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 7 | 6 | 1 | 7 | 1.4 | |
| 9 | West Ham | 21 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 39 | 29 | 10 | 28 | 1.33 | |
| 10 | Fulham | 15 | 3 | 8 | 4 | 15 | 18 | -3 | 17 | 1.13 | |
| 11 | Crystal Palace | 13 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 8 | 16 | -8 | 14 | 1.08 | |
| 12 | Nottingham forest | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 7 | -6 | 4 | 1 | |
| 13 | Aston Villa | 25 | 5 | 6 | 14 | 28 | 38 | -10 | 21 | 0.84 | |
| 14 | Burnley | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 10 | -5 | 5 | 0.83 | |
| 15 | Wolves | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 9 | -5 | 4 | 0.8 | |
| 16 | Newcastle United | 24 | 5 | 4 | 15 | 31 | 44 | -13 | 19 | 0.79 | |
| 17 | Bournemouth | 5 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 12 | -8 | 3 | 0.6 | |
| 18 | Brentford | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | -2 | 1 | 0.5 | |
| 19 | Sheffield United | 5 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 5 | -4 | 2 | 0.4 | |
| 20 | Luton | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
In the 28 Premier League games on December 26, the top sides won nineteen, drew six and lost only three.
Arsenal have the second-best Boxing Day record of any team in history, winning 16 of 25 matches and drawing seven.
Their opponents this year, West Ham, are not too poor themselves: they win, draw and lose seven in 21 games.
At the bottom, Bournemouth and Sheffield United are still waiting for their first win on Boxing Day after five attempts, while Brentford have not won in either of their two attempts so far.
The Bees will have to wait until at least next year to make amends as this time they host Wolves on December 27.
Newcastle has a surprisingly chaotic record, winning just five of 24 Boxing Day tests and losing 15.
Coventry, who are currently in the Championship, surprisingly have the third-highest points per match in Premier League Boxing Day history, with 17 points from eight games and five wins.
If you're looking for a savior on Boxing Day, Harry Kane is usually your man.
He holds the gong for the top scorer in the history of the date, with ten goals in seven games.
None of the current Premier League players come close to that goal.
We're unlikely to be in line for a record day in terms of goals this year, simply because there are only five matches played on December 26 amid a packed festive calendar.
Still, it should be exciting as the last few years pass.
Of the thirteen matches on Boxing Day in the past two years, eight have been won by the visitors, which gives hope of some setbacks this time.
Perhaps the magic of December 26 is akin to that of the FA Cup, something rife with nostalgia that, whether we find it convenient or not, we must keep alive to preserve the unique character of the British game.