Prince Philip funeral: Premiership Rugby announce fixture changes, Premier League and EFL games to be moved

West Ham United and Leicester City players observe a two minute silence prior to kick off, following the death of the Duke of Edinburgh at the age of 99.

Premier League and Football League matches, along with rugby union and cricket games, will be moved or suspended to avoid clashing with Prince Philip’s funeral.

The Duke of Edinburgh died on Friday aged 99. The EFL, Premiership Rugby and British Horseracing have adjusted their schedules on Saturday "as a mark of respect".

When is Prince Philip’s funeral?

Jonathan Burke wears a black armband in honour of the late Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, in the Pertemps Network Handicap Hurdle during Ladies Day of the 2021 Randox Health Grand National Festival.

The Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Philip, died on Friday aged 99 and his funeral is due to take place on Saturday, April 17 at 3pm, marked with a national minute’s silence.

The funeral will be held at St George's Chapel, Windsor.

Will Premier League games be postponed because of the funeral?

The Premier League game Wolves v Sheffield United is scheduled to kick off at 3pm on Saturday, April 17.

It is believed the Premier League will look to move the kick-off time to a different time slot or a different day.

The only other Premier League game that day is Newcastle United v West Ham United which is due to kick-off at 12.30pm.

What will happen to the FA Cup semi-final?

The FA Cup semi-final between Chelsea and Man City is due to be held on Saturday, April 17 at 5.30pm at Wembley Stadium, in London.

The kick-off time could be pushed back an hour to 6.30pm. An update is expected on Monday.

Scottish Cup games are also likely to be affected. An SFA statement read: “In light of confirmation that the funeral of HRH Prince Philip will take place next Saturday at 3pm, we have entered dialogue with the relevant stakeholders with regard to Scottish Cup Fourth Round fixtures scheduled on that day.

“We will update participating clubs, supporters and partners in due course.”

EFL games have been altered due to clash with Prince Philip’s funeral

The EFL have already announced that all of their games in the Championship, League One and League Two which kick off at 3pm will be moved.

There were 32 games across the divisions that were set to get underway at 3pm on the day. Some clubs are pushing for the rearranged games to take place on Friday night instead while others have planned Sunday kick-offs.

An EFL spokesperson said: “As a mark of respect, EFL matches scheduled for 3pm on Saturday 17 April will be moved to avoid a clash with the funeral of HRH The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.

“The EFL will now work with its clubs to determine at what time the matches will be played, giving consideration to the timing of the service.

“An announcement will follow in due course.”

What will happen to Premiership Rugby fixtures? How will cricket fixtures be affected by the funeral?

Premiership Rugby has announced that the kick-offs at all four round 16 matches on Saturday have been moved to avoid a clash with the 3pm funeral of Prince Philip.

Sale v Gloucester and Exeter’s match against Wasps will both start at 12.30 while Newcastle v Bristol will kick off at 5pm, along with Harlequins v Worcester.

A statement read: “As a mark of respect for HRH Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, Premiership Rugby can confirm that all Gallagher Premiership Rugby matches scheduled on Saturday 17 April have been moved to avoid a clash with his funeral service.

“All four matches will be shown live on BT Sport with Exeter Chiefs v Wasps also broadcast on Channel 5.

“We would like to thank our broadcasters and all eight clubs for their co-operation in re-arranging these matches so quickly.”

Ireland v France (2.15pm) in the Women's Six Nations is also due to take place.

In cricket, the nine County Championship matches scheduled on Saturday will be paused between 2.50pm and 4.10pm.

What will happen with Scottish Grand National?

The Scottish Grand National at Ayr has been moved from April 17 to April 18.

The British Horseracing Authority has also moved the Spring Trials at Newbury to the Sunday and announced that there will be no racing between 2.45pm and 4.15pm on Saturday.

The Grand National at Aintree last Saturday went ahead as planned, though jockeys wore black armbands. It was won by Minella Times.