Here's what the Flashscore editors will be watching over the festive period, asides from a few Christmas films of course.
Friday, December 20th
Darts World Championship - ongoing
As always, the festive period marks the start of the marquee PDC World Championship, with a star-studded field of players descending on London’s Alexandra Palace for a shot at glory and a bumper £500,000 in prize money.
Following last year’s epic showpiece between Luke Humphries and Luke Littler, as well as the latter’s remarkable first year as a PDC professional, darts has never been in a healthier position. Millions of new fans have been drawn to the sport and there are plenty of big-name players going from strength to strength at the top of the game.
Former champions Humphries, Michael van Gerwen and Rob Cross all fancy their chances of adding their names to the history books once again while the likes of Littler, Nathan Aspinall and Stephen Bunting are well-placed to challenge for a maiden world crown.
Most of the big names have survived the early rounds but former champion Michael Smith has already fallen and the tests for the remaining favourites are only going to get bigger, so make sure you tune in!
Danny Clark
Saturday, December 21st
Barcelona vs Atletico Madrid - 21:00 CET
The first major match of the festive period in the world of football is taking place in Barcelona, where Hansi Flick's side will play host to Atletico Madrid in a crucial clash in the LaLiga title fight.
Barca looked as if they'd win that fight with ease when they won 11 of their first 12 league games of the season, but the wheels have very much come since then with them tasting victory just once in their last six. That drop in form has allowed both Madrid sides to catch up to them, and Atletico in particular are looking formidable.
Diego Simeone's side are enjoying a simply remarkable run that has seen them win 11 matches in a row including six in LaLiga, and they therefore sit level on points with Barcelona at the top of the league having played a game less.
As has so often been the case with them under Simeone, they've been rock solid at the back with just 11 goals being scored against them in their 17 league games, but Antoine Griezmann, Julian Alvarez and Alexander Sorloth have ensured they're effective at the other end of the pitch too.
Right now, they have all the momentum, and a win at Camp Nou would make them the frontrunners in their quest to win their first league title in four years.
Their task will be made easier by the fact that Barcelona will be without the injured Lamine Yamal and manager Flick, who is serving a touchline ban, and a defeat for the German would see him head into 2025 under pressure for the first time since taking over in the summer.
Finley Crebolder
Oleksandr Usyk vs Tyson Fury - 23:00 CET
Back in May, undefeated champions Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury squared off in the biggest heavyweight bout since 1999. In the end, the Ukrainian Usyk reigned supreme in a battle for the ages, ousting his opponent in a split-decision victory. Seven months on, the two best heavyweights are running it back for a second time as ‘The Gypsy King’ looks to exact revenge.
The win for Usyk was a historic one, as he became the first undisputed heavyweight champion since Lennox Lewis 25 years prior. Although this fight won’t be to crown an undisputed champion, as Daniel Dubois now holds the IBF belt, Usyk will want to prove beyond doubt that he is the best of his generation.
His IQ, engine, and ability to out-manoeuvre all his opponents in the heavyweight division despite having moved up from cruiserweight is the reason why he is one of the greatest boxers of all time. He even proved that he has the power to hurt someone considerably bigger than him when he stood on the verge of knocking Fury out in the ninth round in their last fight.
For Fury, redemption is on his mind. Long seen as the No.1 heavyweight, there is now a sense that he is vulnerable, coming off the back of the defeat to Usyk and a less-than-convincing win against MMA fight Francis Ngannou before that. But he will want to prove that he is still the man.
And he of course remains an elite boxer. He even looked to be on top right at the start of the fight back in May before Usyk completely took over with that brutal knockdown in the ninth round. He will be well aware that the gap between the pair isn’t that large, and he has the potential to turn the tides.
Riyadh plays host once more to one of the biggest fights of the 21st century, as legacies will be forged. A win for Usyk will fully confirm him as the greatest, while a victory for Fury will put him firmly back on top, with eyes on a potential trilogy fight.
Tolga Akdeniz
Wednesday, December 25th
Christmas Day in the NBA - from 18:00 CET
The 2024 NBA Christmas slate kicks off with Victory Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs taking on the Eastern Conference’s third-ranked New York Knicks (-9). The two teams have yet to face each other this year, but the Knicks hold a 5-3 record against the Spurs dating back to 2021.
Following them will be Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks against Anthony Edwards and the Minnesota Timberwolves in what could be the best game of the day. The two will look to rekindle their recent Western Conference finals series in which the Mavs won 4-1. Dallas are 1-0 against the T’Wolves this year, beating them by a score of 120-114 on October 29th.
The early evening game in the States will see the Philadelphia 76ers taking on the Boston Celtics. Joel Embiid was announced to be out for a week due to a sinus fracture, which could force him to be sidelined for this game, but if he wants to fight through the injury and play then we can consider it a Christmas miracle. The Sixers also lost rookie sensation Jared McCain for the year to a torn meniscus, so it’s only natural a healthy Celtics team are nine-point favourites here.
An average 14-11 Warriors team will head out to Los Angeles for a Christmas night matchup against an average 14-10 Lakers team. LeBron James is back playing after being sidelined with a foot injury and is playing as if he just ate a can of spinach. Even though the Warriors are -3.5 favourites, this game could go either way.
Finally, the 14-10 Nuggets will take on the 14-11 Suns (-2.5) to top off this year’s Christmas slate, which will mark back-to-back games after facing each other on the 23rd. Jokic will look to continue his MVP run while the Suns will look to continue their winning ways against the Nuggets, having won five of their last six matchups.
Eric Himmelheber
Christmas Day in the NFL - from 19:00 CET
We are treated to two gifts on Christmas Day in the NFL as the Pittsburgh Steelers host the Kansas City Chiefs while the Baltimore Ravens battle the Houston Texans.
The Steelers are once again going to finish the season with a winning record with this year being the 18th in a row they do not have a losing one. They are 5-1 at home this season, with Dallas being the only team to win at Heinz Field.
For the Chiefs, who are closing in on the number one seed in the AFC, they had a recent injury scare with Patrick Mahomes, though it is said that it is only week-to-week. Whether the three-time Super Bowl winner will feature in the game remains unknown. The Chiefs are 6-1 on the road, with their only loss coming in Buffalo.
Baltimore’s hopes of catching Pittsburgh are not looking good as the Ravens, who won the AFC last year, sit a game back of their AFC North foes. Heading to Houston to meet the Texans, the Ravens have not fully convinced on their travels, owning a 5-3 record on the year.
For the Texans, who have already wrapped up the AFC South division title, they are looking to try and move up to the third seed, catching the Steelers. They are 5-2 at home this campaign, having won their last four.
David Parkes
Thursday, December 26th
Boxing Day in the Premier League - from 13:30 CET
There is something special about Boxing Day football in the UK. That is partly because England is the only major country in Europe to have matches on the 26th and partly because of the magic of Christmas. Footballing families are either at the games on a big day out or watching on TV in front of a warm fire - it is the best time of the year to watch football in England.
With that being said, what is there to look forward to this Boxing Day in the Premier League? Well if you are feeling a little tired and/or hungover after Christmas Day, then you have a full schedule to look forward to. There are matches from 13:30 CET until the final game at 21:00.
First up, Manchester City host Everton as the champions look to restore some normality in what is quickly becoming an abnormal campaign. From Manchester to London at 16:00 CET as title-chasing Chelsea (or not if you listen to their manager) host Fulham in a West London derby between two sides on the up. That is the highlight of five matches kicking off at 16:00 in a busy afternoon of action.
In the penultimate match from 18:30, Wolves host Manchester United in what will be Vitor Pereira’s first game in charge of Wolves, and he'll be facing another Portuguese manager just getting started in England in the form of Ruben Amorim, who has had a mixed time of things thus far.
The final match of the day returns us to the north of the country as league leaders Liverpool host a Leicester City side who have enjoyed a mixed start to life under new manager Ruud van Nistelrooy. It is a relentless day with so much at stake at a critical stage of the season - miss it at your peril.
Harry Dunnett
Boxing Day cricket - from 00:30 CET
One of the highlights of the sporting calendar in Australia is the annual Boxing Day Test at Melbourne’s colossal MCG. Each year Down Under, a touring side will play a match starting on the 26th in one of the largest - a whopping 100,000 seats - and oldest Test venues on the planet.
This summer (or winter depending on where you are), India are the Aussies’ opponents. The sides are midway through an epic five-Test contest with the series tantalisingly poised at 1-1 with two matches to play.
Not only will the MCG’s Boxing Day Test boast two of the best red-ball sides going head-to-head at an iconic venue, but it is also a pivotal clash in the context of the ongoing series.
If you simply can’t get enough cricket, or prefer to watch from more sociable hours, South Africa are also hosting a Boxing Day match - the first of a two-Test series against Pakistan.
An interesting sub-narrative there is that the Proteas need just one win to secure a place in the World Test Championship Final next June - which will likely also feature the victor of Australia vs India.
Pat Dempsey