Friday night lights dominant for Bath in first half of PREM season

There will be a sense of deja vu when Bath Rugby begin the Gallagher PREM season by visiting South West London outfit Harlequins on Friday 25th September (7.45pm).

Bath Rugby will open their Gallagher PREM season against Harlequins under the floodlights here at Twickenham Stoop Stadium for the second year running | Photo © Richard Briggs

The match at Twickenham Stoop Stadium will be a repeat of the Blue, Black & White’s 2025-26 opener, which was also staged on a Friday evening and resulted in a victory for Johann van Graan’s side.

Bath, who went into the 26th September 2025 fixture as reigning champions, emerged 47-31 winners of a thrilling game.

The 2026-27 fixtures were released by the PREM yesterday, Tuesday 28th July. And they have handed the Blue, Black & White five Friday outings under floodlights in their opening nine matches.

The second of those Friday fixtures will provide the Somerset side with their first home game. They will entertain Exeter Chiefs – their conquerors in last term’s play-offs – at The Rec on Friday 2nd October (7.45pm).

Bath’s first Saturday match of the PREM season will take them to 2025-26 champions Northampton Saints on 10th October.

And there will be a second successive away game for the Blue, Black & White as they must go to Gloucester Rugby in Round 4 on Friday 23rd October. Round 4 has been designated Derby Weekend.

Bath’s other Friday fixtures in the opening half of the season will be at home to Bristol Bears on 4th December and away to Newcastle Red Bulls a fortnight later in the first of the festive fixtures.

The remainder of the festive schedule has given the Blue Black & White a home clash with Leicester Tigers on Boxing Day, Saturday 26th December, and a trip to North London to take on Alfie Barbeary’s Saracens on Saturday 2nd January.

Exact dates and kick-off times for the latter nine games of Bath’s PREM programme have yet to be determined.

Those fixtures are currently assigned to specific weekends, starting with the Round 10 tussle at home to the Saints which will be played over the weekend of Friday 22nd to Sunday 24th January.

Bath’s final away match will be against Bristol Bears over the weekend of Friday 28th to Sunday 30th May.

And the last game of the Blue, Black & White’s regular season will be played at The Rec, against Saracens, over the weekend of Friday 4th to Sunday 6th June.

The PREM final will be staged at the Allianz Stadium, Twickenham, on Saturday 19th June.

Bath’s Gallagher PREM fixtures:

September: 25th Harlequins (A, 7.45pm).

October: 2nd Exeter Chiefs (H, 7.45pm), 10th Northampton Saints (A, 3.05pm), 23rd Gloucester Rugby (A, 7.45pm), 31st Sale Sharks (H, 3.05pm).

December: 4th Bristol Bears (H, 7.45pm), 18th Newcastle Red Bulls (A, 7.45pm), 26th Leicester Tigers (H, 3.05pm).

January: 2nd Saracens (A, 3.05pm), 22nd-24th Northampton Saints (H).

March: 19th-21st Gloucester Rugby (H), 26th-28th Sale Sharks (A).

April: 16th-18th Newcastle Red Bulls (H), 23rd-25th Leicester Tigers (A).

May: 7th-9th Exeter Chiefs (A), 14th-16th Harlequins (H), 28th-30th Bristol Bears (A).

June: 4th-6th Saracens (H).