Crewe Alex 2026-27 Fixture List - 6 Thoughts

I say it every year, but I do love fixture release day. Yes, to some it's largely a waste of time as you play everyone home and away right? But I think it matters. Anyway, for those that do care, the fixtures of League Two have been released today and we know when Crewe Alex will face the other 23 teams in the division. So, with the list now out and we've had a bit of time to fully digest it, here are some thoughts:

Port Vale Early

We were all looking for Port Vale home and away, let's be honest. The Alex have played the Vale early in the league previously, notably on the opening day in 15-16 and again in August in 17-18. Plus of course there were the 2 cup games back in 23-24. So having such a big game early on could be seen as both a blessing and a curse at the same time.

What will also be interesting is to see what putting this fixture during the summer holidays does for the attendance. It might see more attend for that reason, as could the fact that either side of this game they have Crawley and Colchester, 2 very unappealing games for anything other than the die hards. However, the timing of this game could also lead to a few missing out due to being away, due to it being the Bank Holiday weekend the final hurrah of summer. Either way, we get an early trip to Vale Park, which will be fun. Hopefully.

Early Miles

The next thing that you notice is that there are quite a few long trips early in their schedule. They have Crawley on the opening day before trips to Colchester, Swindon, Exeter(in a midweek, urgh) and Gillingham. Their 4 longest trips will be ticked off in their first 8 away games, which to me is definitely a good thing.

Late Midweeks

I'll never understand why they don't schedule the bulk of their midweek games earlier in the season when the weather is slightly better and the pitches still in decent condition. But no, this season for some reason, 2 of their final 6 games will be midweekers, against Swindon(H) and Bristol Rovers(A). That just feels bizarre.

What happens if we have a wet/particularly cold winter? What about teams who progress deep in the FA Cup or EFL Trophy? The knock on effect will potentially see teams playing Saturday-Tuesday-Saturday every week in the final 2 months of the season. Compare that to the 4 month stretch between August and November, where they have just 2 Tuesday games. I don't get it.

Boxing Day Away Again

This has to be by request right? The Alex have gotten a 5th straight away game on Boxing Day, which for me is ridiculous if it isn't on purpose. Maybe the Alex have requested this so that their game before Christmas can be at home and it once again will allow them to move it to the Friday night, lower ticket prices and get another bumper crowd.

But I'm sorry, the thought of having to make another car journey to an away game on Boxing Day, even if it is to the relatively close Fleetwood, isn't one that fills me with much excitement.

TV Selections

Thankfully the Alex managed to dodge having their opening day game moved for live Sky broadcast. But we'll find out by the end of next week(July 2nd) how many of their opening 2 months will be affected. By the end of July, we'll then know how many games are moved until the start of January. So whilst we can't rush out and buy train tickets for the opening few games just yet, we'll know soon enough just how delightful 12:30 on a Saturday games they'll have to endure.

Personal Preferences

This is very much a me thing, but some fixtures which catch the eye for various reasons are:

• Not having back to back games after Christmas. Fleetwood away on Boxing Day then 2 big bumper home games against Tranmere and Oldham should be fun.

• Accrington away being on a midweek in December. Brutal.

• Walsall away in midweek. Good luck trying to battle the M6 traffic to get to that one die hards.

• Tranmere and Shrewsbury away in April. Not complaining at that, love how that's fallen.

• Ending with Grimsby. What is it with the Alex facing Grimsby in the latter part of a season? This will be the 4th season in a row they've clashed in April/May.

• No promotion parties. Whilst it's possible any of their final 4 home opponents are celebrating promotion at Gresty Road, it feels highly unlikely at this point. So we won't have to witness more scenes of fans celebrating on the pitch come the end of the season thank goodness.

Final Thoughts

So there we go then. We now know when the Alex will face each opponent. Truthfully, I think it's a decidedly mixed bag. Some good trips put in good spots on the calendar, but things like the Boxing Day game and the bizarre lean towards midweek games being later in the season give me mixed feelings. It'll be curious once the season starts to see how things shake out and where the difficult/more favourable periods fall of course. But for now, we can truly start to look ahead to the start of the season, which is now 6 weeks away.