The Toffees and the Seagulls get their campaigns underway at Goodison Park.
Everton get their final season at Goodison Park underway on Saturday, as they host on Brighton in this EPL opening weekend clash.
The Toffees are set to leave their home of 132 years at the end of this campaign ahead of a move to a new £800m purpose built stadium in nearby Bromley-Moore Dock, adding an extra layer of pressure on manager Sean Dyche and a side that have flirted too close for comfort to the relegation zone in recent seasons.
They take on a Brighton side today that has new German boss Fabian Hurzeler taking charge of his first competitive game for the Seagulls. The former St. Pauli coach succeeds Roberto De Zerbi and has set a new record as being the Premier League's youngest permanent manager at the age of 31.
Everton host Brighton & Hove Albion on Saturday, Aug. 17, at Goodison Park, with kickoff set for 3 p.m. BST local time, making it a 10 a.m. ET or 7 a.m. PT start in the US and Canada and a 12 a.m. AEST kickoff in the early hours of Sunday in Australia.
How to Watch the Game on TV and Streaming Services
United States
The game will be shown live on Peacock. To watch, you'll need a Peacock Premium or Premium Plus account to catch the game live.
Peacock offers two Premium plans, and after the recent price increases, the ad-supported Premium plan will cost $8 a month, and the ad-free Premium Plus plan will cost $14 a month.
United Kingdom
No broadcaster has the rights to show this game live in the UK, due to the traditional Saturday 3 p.m. kickoff blackout, which prohibits matches being shown in the region at that time in order to protect attendances throughout the English football pyramid.
That also means that if you're in the UK traveling for pleasure or for work, you're unlikely to be able to watch the game like you normally would at home, thanks to geo-blocking.
There's one option to get around this, however. By using a VPN, as explained above, you can set your location to a country where the match is being broadcast and go from there.
Canada
If you want to stream this EPL game live in Canada, you'll need to subscribe to Fubo Canada. The service has exclusive rights to every Premier League fixture once again this season.
Fubo is the go-to destination for Canadians looking to watch the EPL this season, with exclusive streaming rights to every match. It costs CA$30 per month, though you can save some cash by paying quarterly or annually.
Australia
Football fans Down Under can watch EPL matches live on streaming service Optus Sport, which is showing every single Premier League fixture of the 2024/25 season live in Australia.
With exclusive rights to screen all EPL matches live this season, as well as German Bundesliga and Spanish La Liga games, streaming service Optus Sport is a particularly big draw for Aussie soccer fans.
If you're already an Optus network customer you can bag Optus Sport for a reduced price, with discounts bringing the price down to as low as AU$7 per month. If you're not, a standalone monthly subscription to the service starts at AU$25.
Using a VPN to Watch the EPL
If you find yourself unable to view EPL matches locally, you may need a different way to watch the games -- that's where using a VPN can come in handy. A VPN is also the best way to stop your ISP from throttling your speeds on game day by encrypting your traffic, and it's also a great idea if you're traveling and find yourself connected to a Wi-Fi network, and you want to add an extra layer of privacy for your devices and logins.
With a VPN, you're able to virtually change your location on your phone, tablet or laptop to get access to the game. Most VPNs, like our Editors' Choice, ExpressVPN, make it really easy to do this.
Using a VPN to watch or stream sports is legal in any country where VPNs are legal, including the US, UK and Canada, as long as you have a legitimate subscription to the service you're streaming. You should be sure your VPN is set up correctly to prevent leaks: Even where VPNs are legal, the streaming service may terminate the account of anyone it deems to be circumventing correctly applied blackout restrictions.
ExpressVPN is our current best VPN pick for people who want a reliable and safe VPN, and it works on a variety of devices. It's normally $13 a month, but if you sign up for an annual subscription for $100 you'll get three months free and save 49%. That's the equivalent of $6.67 a month with code SPECIALDEAL, which should be automatically applied.
Note that ExpressVPN offers a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Everton vs. Brighton Preview
The 2024-25 English Premier League season is in full swing, and on Saturday, two clubs looking to get off to good starts square off, as Brighton and Hove Albion pay a visit to Everton.
Brighton went into last season with the expectation they could challenge for a top-six spot in the table, especially after their impressive performance in 2022-23. However, the club slipped near the end of the 2023-24 campaign, falling to a tie with Bournemouth for 11th, 15 points back of sixth place. Out went manager Roberto De Zerbi, and in steps Fabian Hurzeler. At age 31, he is the youngest permanent manager in league history. The club, thanks to a couple of solid transfers, is expected to finish in the upper half of the EPL this year.
Heading into the club’s final season at Goodison Park, Everton is hoping to they can have a better result. Last season, the Toffees managed to avoid relegation thanks to some spirited play, overcoming a six-point penalty after breaching Profitability and Sustainability rules. Yet, their 15th-place finish leaves much to be desired for Lverpool’s other club, though many expect Everton to be fighting to avoid relegation once again.
Everton is 11-8-6 against Brighton, with the two teams coming to a pair of 1-1 draws last season.
Everton FC vs. Brighton and Hove Albion FC
When: Saturday, August 17
Time: 10 a.m. ET
Where: Goodison Park (Liverpool, U.K.)
Stream: Peacock
Game Preview
Everton will be looking to start their final season in the friendly confines of Goodison Park on a positive note, but they are going to come up against a Brighton & Hove Albion smarting after a difficult European campaign season. The Seagulls have since changed managers with Roberto De Zerbi shown the door and 31-year-old Fabian Hürzeler taking over, the youngest ever permanent manager in the Premier League.
Both teams have made a raft of changes in their squads since last year, but somehow the Blues will still go into this game looking more like they ended last season than anything else. Still, considering that the Toffees have one win and two draws against the Seagulls since Sean Dyche took over does brook some hope.
Key Match Info
Competition: Premier League Matchweek 1
Date and start time: Saturday, August 17th at 7:00 a.m. PT / 10:00 a.m ET / 3:00 p.m. BST
Stadium: Goodison Park, Liverpool, England, United Kingdom
Capacity: 39,572
Weather: 65°F/18°C, cloudy, 1% chance of precipitation, 10 mph winds
TV: Peacock - United States; N/A - United Kingdom; Fubo - Canada, Canal+ Sport 4 Afrique, SuperSport MáXimo 3
Radio: evertontv
Live stream: Fubo, ESPN Play Sur, beIN SPORTS CONNECT, DStv Now, RUSH, Hotstar VIP, JioTV
Gamethread: There will be a live blog for this game, with our coverage continuing after the final whistle with the match recap and reaction.
*Royal Blue Mersey has affiliate partnerships and may earn commissions for products purchased via affiliate links provided.
Information from LiveSoccerTV.com
The Blues have done well to foil the Seagulls in their last three meetings now, Last season both legs went to 1-1 draws.
