Chelsea pre-season fixtures: Schedule, how to watch and kickoff times

In what has become a regular occurrence under BlueCo, Chelsea go into another pre-season with a new manager at the helm.

After a combination of Enzo Maresca, Liam Rosenior and Calum McFarlane could only guide Chelsea to a 10th-placed finish in the Premier League, Alonso is tasked with securing the Blues a return to European football as a bare minimum.

For new managers, pre-season matches are usually crucial to implementing their style of play before the real action gets underway.

Here, Sports Mole runs through everything you need to know about Chelsea's 2026-27 pre-season.

Who are Chelsea playing in pre-season?

After two behind-closed-doors friendlies, Alonso's first official game saw Chelsea record a 6-4 victory over Western Sydney Wanderers in a thrilling game in Australia.

Having named a youthful starting lineup for that fixture, the Spaniard seemed satisfied with the experience ahead of the remaining pre-season fixtures.

However, four days after facing Western Sydney Wanderers, Alonso's side suffered a 2-1 defeat to London rivals Tottenham Hotspur to conclude their tour of Australia.

Chelsea then headed to Hong Kong, where they suffered a 1-0 loss against Juventus on August 5 before responding with a 3-0 demolition of AC Milan in Indonesia.

The Blues were next in action on August 9 in Malaysia against Johor Darul Ta'zim, a clash which ended 3-3 and was originally supposed to conclude their schedule.

However, Chelsea wrapped up preparations for the 2026-27 campaign with a 3-1 victory over Real Sociedad on August 15.

How can I watch Chelsea's pre-season fixtures?

Chelsea supporters will be able to watch all the friendly matches on CFC+ through the official Chelsea app.

However, an annual subscription of £14.83 is required to access this service.

Who will play for Chelsea in pre-season?

Any players who reached the World Cup last 16 and beyond with their respective nations are not expected to commence pre-season training until August.

Therefore, the likes of Reece James, Malo Gusto, Enzo Fernandez and Morgan Rogers will be among those to start life under Alonso later than their teammates.

That said, Chelsea have theoretically benefitted from some star names, such as Levi Colwill, Cole Palmer and Joao Pedro, missing out on World Cup selections and having had a longer rest period than anticipated.

Alonso will want to run the rule over as many Chelsea players as possible over the coming weeks, and that has shown through the 27-player squad that he has selected.

Additionally, the likes of Danny Welbeck and Mykhailo Mudryk will also get an early chance to impress their new boss after the former's arrival from Brighton & Hove Albion, while the latter has been cleared to play for the first time since November 2024 after his doping saga came to an end.