EFL confirms start date and altered schedule for 2022/23 season to fit in Qatar World Cup

The competition, which is being held in Qatar in 2022, takes place between November 21 and December 18.

As a result, the Championship, League One and League Two will begin its schedule on Saturday, July 30, a week earlier than normal.

The Championship, meanwhile, will take a break from November 12 until the group stages end on December 10.

Fixtures in League One and League Two will continue as normal.

Confirming next season's schedule, the EFL said in a statement: "The Sky Bet Championship, League One and League Two is set to start on the weekend of Saturday, July 30, 2022.

"The 2022 World Cup in Qatar takes place over a five-week period in November and December 2022, with the EFL schedule adjusted to accommodate.

"Match round 16 in the Championship, set to take place on Saturday, November 12, will be the final round of fixtures played ahead of the call-up period for the tournament, which begins on Monday, November 14.

"The Championship will resume on December 10 following the culmination of the World Cup group stages, whilst League One and League Two fixtures will continue as normal. The existing international calls postponement criteria will be applied throughout, where necessary.

"The Carabao Cup will be getting underway week commencing August 8, with the Papa John’s Trophy starting later that month, week commencing August 29.

"The finals of both competitions will be held at Wembley Stadium, on Sunday, February 26 for the Carabao Cup and Sunday, March 19 for the Papa John’s Trophy.

"The final day of the 2022/23 season in the Championship, League One and League Two will be across the weekend of Saturday, May 6, 2023, with the Sky Bet EFL Play-Off Finals scheduled for the weekend of May 27-29, 2023."

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