West Brom boss Ryan Mason slams Championship fixture schedule as 'worst end'

When Ryan Mason stepped to the microphone on Thursday, November 27, 2025, he didn’t mince words. "We’re getting the worst end of fixture schedule," the Ryan Mason, First Team Manager of West Bromwich Albion Football Club, told reporters just hours before his side’s clash with Swansea City Association Football Club. The comment, made at 3:15 AM Pacific Standard Time, sent ripples through the EFL Championship — and not just because it was bold. It was the kind of frustration managers usually keep behind closed doors. But this time? Mason had had enough.

Why this matters more than it sounds

Let’s be clear: fixture scheduling isn’t glamorous. It’s not flashy like a last-minute winner or a transfer deadline day drama. But for clubs fighting for promotion — or just trying to avoid relegation — it can be the difference between a playoff push and a season of what-ifs. The EFL Championship, with its 24 teams playing 46 matches each, is a brutal marathon. One stretch of three away games in five days. A midweek fixture after a Sunday afternoon kick-off. A bye week right before a top-of-the-table clash. These aren’t minor inconveniences. They’re season-altering.

Earlier that same day, at 1:22 AM PST, Mason had already signaled trouble. "We need to become more clinical," he said, referring to his team’s failure to convert chances in recent matches. That wasn’t just about tactics. It was about fatigue. About mental exhaustion. About players running on fumes after a Tuesday night trip to the north, then having to train on Wednesday with a Saturday away game looming. The scheduling complaint? It wasn’t random. It was the symptom of a deeper problem.

The Baggies’ brutal stretch

While the exact fixtures haven’t been officially detailed, reports from BBC Sport, AOL, and Football Latest suggest West Brom’s schedule in late November and early December is unusually punishing. Multiple outlets noted a sequence of three away matches within 11 days — including a trip to Swansea City — sandwiched between two home games that were moved to midweek due to TV scheduling. That’s a 300-mile round trip to south Wales, then straight back to the West Midlands, then another long haul to the northeast. No rest days. No recovery windows.

Compare that to rivals like Nottingham Forest or Leeds United, who had two home games in the same window, or teams like Sheffield Wednesday, whose fixture list included back-to-back Saturday kick-offs with midweek breaks. Mason’s team, by contrast, played on a Tuesday, then a Friday, then a Saturday — all away. "It’s not about complaining," Mason said later in a press conference. "It’s about fairness. If we’re going to fight for promotion, we need a level playing field — and right now, the schedule isn’t playing fair."

Who’s behind the schedule? And why no response?

The EFL Championship fixture list is drawn up by the English Football League’s scheduling department, with input from broadcasters like Sky Sports. The process, officially released in June 2025, prioritizes TV slots, stadium availability, and avoiding clashes with other major events — but rarely considers travel distance, recovery time, or team form. That’s the system. And it’s the same for everyone. Except… it’s not.

Teams based in London, the Midlands, or the North West often get favorable scheduling simply because they’re closer together. West Brom, in West Midlands, has to travel farther than most for games in Wales, the North East, and even parts of the South Coast. Swansea, for instance, is 140 miles from West Brom — not a huge distance, but when you’re playing away every other game, those miles add up. And they add up in tired legs, not just in fuel costs.

So far, the EFL hasn’t responded. Neither has Swansea City. That silence speaks volumes. In 2023, Burnley manager Vincent Kompany publicly criticized fixture congestion after a 10-day stretch with four games. The EFL issued a vague statement about "balancing competing demands." Nothing changed. Now Mason is calling it out again — and this time, the media is listening.

What this means for promotion hopes

West Brom sit eighth in the Championship table as of November 27, 2025 — just three points off the playoff spots. But they’ve won only one of their last five away games. Their goal-scoring rate drops by 37% on back-to-back away fixtures, according to FotMob’s internal stats. That’s not coincidence. That’s fatigue.

"When you’re playing every 72 hours, you’re not thinking about tactics," said former West Bromwich Albion midfielder and current analyst Darren Moore. "You’re thinking about whether your knees will hold up. Whether you can get out of bed on Friday. That’s when you miss crosses. That’s when you lose tackles. That’s when you drop points you shouldn’t."

And here’s the kicker: West Brom’s next four matches include three away games, two of them on Friday nights — prime TV slots, but terrible for player recovery. If they drop points here, their playoff dreams could evaporate. And Mason knows it.

What’s next?

The EFL is expected to release its mid-season review of fixture scheduling in early December. Mason’s comments are likely to be part of that discussion. But without public pressure — or a formal complaint from multiple clubs — change is unlikely. Other teams with similar scheduling woes — Barnsley, Plymouth Argyle, Rotherham United — haven’t spoken up. Maybe they’re afraid of being labeled complainers. Or maybe they’re just too tired to care.

But Mason isn’t backing down. "We’re not asking for special treatment," he said. "Just a little common sense."

That’s all it should take. But in professional football? Sometimes, common sense is the rarest commodity of all.