A litany of action awaits in the first week of March from all over the sporting landscape, with drama and intrigue all to come in a month that is already looking to be a vital time in shaping the fortunes of clubs and players for 2026.

Monday 2nd March Sky Bet Championship: Birmingham City v Middlesbrough 20:00

The top of the Championship is starting to take shape, which for Middlesbrough is looking exceedingly positive, as the Teessiders currently sit in the automatic promotion places.

The Birmingham side's first season back in the second tier will test their promotion pedigree.

Boro have been pushing for the top spot for almost the entire season, but their battle with Coventry for the title has hit a roadblock, and now the gap between the two has extended to eight points.

Instead of looking forward, Middlesbrough now have to peek over their shoulder as the chasing pack continues at an alarming pace with just three points between Middlesbrough in second and Hull in fifth.

A three-match winless run has done nothing to quell fears of dropping out of the top two, making each match more important as the wins become further apart.

Looking to compound the tremble on Teeside is Birmingham City, a side newly promoted but with no lack of significant backing that has seen them steady themselves in the Championship.

49 points in 34 matches has them completely safe, and now they are hoping to make an outside shot for the playoffs.

It would be an incredible result if City can close the eight-point gap to the top six, and with just one league loss in nine games, it would be no surprise if their run can be sustained and they become a real problem in the twilight of the season.

If they are to complete such a task, they will need to rebound quickly from their most recent match against Millwall, in which The Blues were on the receiving end of a 3-0 drubbing from Millwall.

Victory could spell a transformation for both sides, with all eyes looking to St Andrews for a battle that could cause chaos at the top of the table in a league that is already as unpredictable as it gets.

Date: 02/02/2025

Time: 20:00

Venue: St Andrews Stadium, Birmingham

The match will be shown on Sky Sports Football and Sky Sports Main Event.

 


Tuesday 3rd March Premier League: Leeds United v Sunderland 19:30

The Premier League has been notoriously devilish to newly promoted sides, but Leeds and Sunderland face off this week in a season where both are trying to take away that reputation.

Leeds still hold a six-point buffer to the relegation zone despite a narrow 1-0 loss to Manchester City at the weekend. It has been a season of two halves for the Whites, as an early struggle looked to be the story of their season until Daniel Farke altered his system, which has brought them into a new phase of excellence in the top flight.

Since implementing a new system in early December, Leeds have only lost three in 15 matches and have shown themselves to be a hard team to break down even for the sides at the top of the league, as impressive results over Chelsea and Liverpool have proven.

The Whites will have to go without Daniel Farke on the touchline after he was shown a red card following the final whistle against Manchester City. The German's remonstrations at the officials after a controversial allotment of added time were considered too far, and he will be in the stands at Elland Road.

Sunderland have been on an opposite trajectory this season, as they appeared to take to the Premier League like a duck to water with an impressive early display that saw them shoot up the league table, leading to some pondering whether they can disrupt the upper echelons of the table.

A dip in form has taken them out of that running, and the Black Cats now sit in 12th and are now winless in four. They did end a three-game losing streak with a 1-1 draw over Bournemouth, which could spell an uptick.

It will be a tough task under the lights at Elland Road, but with Leeds also not in the highest of spirits after their loss and with their manager away from the touchline, it could be a tough task for the home side.

A win for the Whites could prove vital as we enter the last few months of the season and could prove more that Leeds does have the credentials to compete in the top flight.

Date: 03/03/3036

Time: 19:30

Venue: Elland Road, Leeds

The match will be shown on TNT Sports 2



Thursday 5th March BetMGM Premier League: Gerwyn Price v Stephen Bunting 20:10

The Premier League was burst wide open last week with the emergence of Stephen Bunting, who was crowned night 4 champion after an equally colossal and surprising showing in Belfast.

Bunting went from zero wins in total to three on the spin and the spoils of a nightly win, all in the space of a week. His first victim of the night was Luke Humphries, who fought bravely but was unable to overcome a resurgent Bunting, who ended his drought with a 6-4 win.

The semi-final against Johnny Clayton was a simpler affair for the Bullet, who spearheaded a rampant performance in a 6-0 demolition of the Welshman.

The first final of the season did not unnerve Bunting, who ran out a convincing winner again against Van Veen with a 6-2 scoreline that proved the Bullet’s season was finally getting started.

Gerwyn Price had a fight on his hands in the quarter-final last week against Michael van Gerwen. The Dutchman looked to be easing to a win and one leg away before Price racked off three consecutive legs to steal the victory.

Another scrap was to come against van Veen as Price looked to be cruising and 2-0 up after two legs before a fightback from the young Dutchman sent him 3-2 up. A ding-dong battle ensued which at one point saw the two tied once again at 5-5.

A missed bullseye was enough to be capitalised on, and the Welshman was sent packing. It's up to Price to make sure he gets an early victory out of the way; if Bunting is to succeed, he has the chance to leapfrog the Welshman into the top four.

Price will no doubt be back stronger this week in his home nation, and it will be interesting to see if Bunting can continue his form or if it is time to be brought back down to earth in front of a crowd that will be completely in the Iceman’s corner.

Date: 05/03/2026

Time: 20:10

Venue: Utilita Arena, Cardiff

The match will be shown on Sky Sports Darts.
 


Friday 6th March Betfred Super League: York RLFC v Warrington Wolves 20:00

The Super League returns from Vegas to a splendour of matches back in Blighty. One of the most intriguing is the division's new boys, York, hosting an in-form Warrington side in a game that is proving to be impossible to predict.

The Knights have been the surprise package of the 2026 season, with many expecting them to have a torrid time and even struggle to pick up a single victory.

Instead, in their first three matches at the top level, they have looked at home, with a single loss to Leeds Rhinos being the only bad spot.

A stunning win over quadruple winners Hull KR on the opening day of the season has been built upon by once again coming out close winners over Hull FC in an exhilarating meeting that ended 17-16.

Four points in three games has the Knights in seventh place, but level on points with everyone up to second. While their position does not mean much at this early stage, it will be encouraging for the team to see how well they are acclimatising to the Super League.

Warrington have also started the campaign with some vigour and remain unbeaten in all competitions. Whilst still having only played two games, the Wire have already shown impressive performances, starting with a 24-14 result over St Helens and most recently running out 27-16 winners over Wakefield.

With many questions still left to be answered in terms of how the season will look for most teams, one big point for Warrington is how they will fare away from home.

This will be a chance for York to show their strength at the LNER Community Stadium, which could prove vital to them for the rest of the season. The last time they got the chance to play there was the infamous win over The Robins, and if The Knights can replicate that performance, they will be in tremendous stead for an exciting campaign of rugby to follow.

Date: 06/03/2026

Time: 20:00

Venue: York Community Stadium, York

The match will be shown on Sky Go.