TLFG: 24-31 August 2026

To say I'm on a high at the moment would be an understatement.

Sunday afternoon saw the derby between Actonians and QPR played at Bedfont Sports near Heathrow.

After some big summer investment, both were tipped to be among the title contenders.

On Thursday, in the build up to this, I interviewed the A's new investor/player Steph McCaffrey for the club's podcast and it was clear she was really up for this.

She believed that on paper the R's were better but that Actonians' high press and attacking style would see them prevail and so it proved as she gave a masterclass.

Having won caps for the USA, when they were really good, she scored twice and grabbed an assist in a morale-boosting 3-0 win.

Sadly I was working so missed the whole thing but the result is what it's all about.

This week I interviewed former USA player Steph McCaffrey 

Hats off to my friend Ash who reads this blog and is QPR women's biggest fan. Today was tough for him but he has been incredibly sporting before and after the game and even helped set the ground up before kick-off - that's what football's all about. He even got a photo with Steph, who he's had a lot of praise for, after seeing her beat his team. Legend!

In just over 48 hours time, the A's face another big test as Fulham visit for another derby in the FAWNL Cup. They play in the division above and have started strongly but I'm sure there'll definitely be some rotation on our part, if not theirs too.

I'm heading down to Devon towards the end of the week but should be back for the feast of football that is the August Bank Holiday weekend.

This blog goes right through to Monday (31 August) so you can plan fully. There are games every day this week so fill your boots - I hope to be at Actonians' games against Fulham (home) on Tuesday and Billericay Town (away) on Sunday at the very least.

One other small note - it was announced this week that Ukrainian club Shakhtar Donetsk will be playing all their UEFA competition home games at Stamford Bridge this season so hopefully it should be relatively easy to get tickets. Let's see what the pricing is like.

THE WEEK AHEAD

The match of the week comes right at the start as Fulham host Chelsea in a big west London derby on Monday night. The Blues have dominated these games for years but the Cottagers have been pretty good against them of late, winning two of the last four.

The biggest midweek fixtures would all appear to be in the EFL Cup Second Round. Most Premier League sides, bar the ones in Europe, enter at this stage with the derbies between Tottenham Hotspur and Charlton Athletic and Fulham and AFC Wimbledon looking like the most fun.

Going into the weekend, we've got an unusually busy Friday night with the Premier League game at Selhurst Park between Crystal Palace and Manchester City topping the bill. It's been a summer of big change for the Eagles and their opening day loss at Everton will not have inspired many.

The biggest game in the EFL can be found at Vicarage Road on Saturday where Watford host West Ham United. The Hammers lost their derby at home to Charlton and are still looking for their first win since returning to the Championship.

In League One, Leyton Orient take on Barnsley whilst League Two leaders Barnet will look to extend their 100% record with a win over Cheltenham Town.

Boreham Wood and Boston United, two of the top six, meet at Meadow Park in arguably the biggest match of the week in the National League.

In east London, Dagenham & Redbridge have made an impressive start in the National League South and are already four points clear after just four games. On Bank Holiday Monday they welcome Slough Town, who've lost every game, to Victoria Road so more points should be expected to come their way.

The August Bank Holiday is all about non-league football and there are a numerous derbies around the capital. For me, the all-Kent affair between Dartford and Chatham Town should be some occasion. Nearly 1,500 attended the game between the Darts and Welling United on Saturday and this could be even bigger. It's possible they might make it all-ticket but check in advance to see what the situation is.

At the time of writing, Hashtag United and Redbridge are the top two in the Isthmian League North. The pair groundshare and meet on the Bank Holiday for what should be a keenly contested game.

One of the most important matches of the week, certainly for the clubs involved, is the FA Cup replay between Frenford and Haringey Borough on Tuesday night. Frenford, from Ilford, play a level below Haringey so did well to get a 2-2 draw in north London on Saturday.

In the ninth tier, a trio of games take my fancy - Abbey Rangers v Sheerwater and the groundshare derby between Tooting & Mitcham United and Balham in the CCL Premier South, whilst in north-east London it's Woodford Town v Barking in the ESL.

Wembley have made a decent start in the CCL Division 1 and they entertain last season's beaten play-off finalists Brook House on Saturday.

In the women's game, the most notable match of the week is the first leg of the UEFA Champions League match between Chelsea and Spanish club Real Sociedad at AFC Wimbledon's ground on Wednesday.

The same night, Arsenal host Charlton Athletic in a friendly at Boreham Wood as they continue their preparations for the new WSL season.

Tuesday and Wednesday see a number of group games in the FAWNL Cup - the derby between Actonians and Fulham is arguably the pick of the fixtures. The Cottagers' big league game on Sunday against Plymouth Argyle at Motspur Park tops the bill on Sunday.

As always, please make sure you check with clubs before you travel just in case a game has been called off or the venue or kick-off time has changed - this is highly possible for some of the lower non-league clubs and development matches. Also, please let me know if anything is wrong or missing.

Details on all of this week's games can be found on the following match maps. If you've never used them before, please note that when there is more than one match at a specific ground you'll only be able to see individual match pins if you zoom right in. If you don't, the pins obscure each other and you might miss them. To avoid this, you can also scroll down the list of games on the drop down menu at the top of the map page to make sure you get all the information. Games are listed from top to bottom in date order so Monday's games (yellow pin) will appear first and Sunday's (orange pin) last. Games are also ranked in terms of status so the higher the division, the higher up the list they will appear on each day.

Donate to TLFG's coffee-drinking fund here

Also if you're unfamiliar with the English league structure I indicate the level at which an individual league sits in the national 'pyramid' with the Premier League at the top (Level 1) and various minor leagues at the bottom (Level 10). Typically a top level game will see crowds of anywhere between 20,000-60,000. These figures will gradually decline as you go down the leagues until you get to Levels 8-10 where attendances of 150 or less are most common.

It should also be noted that the top four levels are for fully professional teams. Level 5 has a mixture of professional and semi-professional teams, while Levels 6-10 will see most players paid but it will vary from no more than travel expenses at the bottom, right up to several hundred pounds a week at the top.

MIDWEEK MATCH MAP

Monday fixtures - yellow pin

Tuesday fixtures - green pin

Wednesday fixtures - turquoise pin

Thursday fixtures - purple pin

Friday fixtures - black pin

WEEKEND MATCH MAP

Saturday fixtures - blue pin

Sunday fixtures - orange pin

Monday fixtures - yellow pin

    

GET INVOLVED

If you're going to see a game, whether you're a local or a visitor, please let me know what you've  been up to. If you're interested in reviewing a ground in the London area for this blog then get in touch. I also very much welcome photos of your football travels.

NEED HELP?

Got any questions about visiting London? Don't hesitate to ask - be they football or more general travel/touristy queries. I do not charge for this advice like some other sites so don't hold back!

You can contact TLFG through the comments section below, via X/Twitter, Instagram or even by good old email.

Has this blog been helpful? Donate to TLFG's coffee-drinking fund here 

TLFG: 17-23 August 2026

Greetings one and all and welcome to this week's TLFG.

I'm publishing on Monday morning as I'm still down in Kent after travelling down to watch Actonians' first match of the new FAWNL season at Chatham Town.

Chatham is on the River Medway alongside Rochester and Gillingham - they are in effect triplet towns or a small city.

There's a lot of maritime and literary history around here, with a lot of museums and things to do. Consequently I brought the whole family down and we're staying in Rochester where there's a seventh-century cathedral (second oldest in the country) and a 12th-century castle, plus some Charles Dickens attractions too - all just over 30 minutes train ride away from St Pancras.

Anyway, you're primarily here for the football so I'll rewind to Sunday afternoon.

It's the next round of the FA Cup this weekend 

After checking into our hotel (Rochester Travelodge - excellent value at £40 a night for a family room), my daughters and I got a taxi the two-miles to Chatham Town's Bauvill Stadium.

It cost £9 and was well worth it as the journey was uphill pretty much the whole way, so bear that in mind if you're coming by public transport.

The ground has been modernised and is all set up for an afternoon out with a beer garden which sports a huge big screen which showed the FA Community Shield while the match was going on - it part faces the pitch so if you go behind the goal at one end, you can watch both matches at the same time!

With a pumping sound system, a bouncy castle in one corner and a good few hundred in the ground, the atmosphere was lively.

As for the match itself, following Actonians' summer revamp, many saw this as a clash of two title contenders.

What a game ensued!

The A's started brightly but got caught on the break from one of their own set pieces and fell 1-0 down after 11 minutes.

Undeterred, they continued to attack and equalised just after the half hour when defender Lois Colley, a former Chatham player, equalised with a long-range free-kick.

Level at the break, Actonians came out on the front foot and saw an effort blocked on the line before the Chats surged down the left and scored again.

With Colley injured soon after and other stalwart defender Jennie Brereton already subbed off, the visitors were left with only one recognised defender for the remainder but managed to equalise and then take the lead through captain Georgia Griffin with only five minutes to go.

Sadly they couldn't hold on and the hosts grabbed a late equaliser from a goalmouth scramble as the game finished 3-3.

It was a fair score and one I would've happily taken before kick-off - for the neutral it would've been a great watch.

Next Sunday they face another one of the title favourites and big local rivals QPR in what could be another epic game - sadly I'll be working.

Following the game, I confirmed I'll be interviewing the A's new player/owner Steph McCaffrey later this week for my podcast - she played a big part in this game and hit the post herself at one point.

Right, I've got a castle to climb. Have a great week! 

 THE WEEK AHEAD

The Premier League makes its return with game one falling on Friday night at the Emirates as reigning champions Arsenal welcome newly promoted Coventry City. It's followed on Saturday by the derby between Brentford and Tottenham Hotspur at 530pm.

There's a fine trio of games in the Championship on Saturday too with the derby between West Ham United and Charlton Athletic at the London Stadium topping the bill.

AFC Wimbledon have a busy week, beginning with an EFL Trophy game at Leyton Orient on Tuesday, before Reading pay them a visit in the league at the weekend.

Also in the EFL Trophy on Tuesday, our only fourth-tier club Barnet entertain Arsenal U21 at The Hive in a north London derby.

The National League Cup is also back for its third season. This competition sees clubs from the fifth tier go head-to-head with pro club U21 sides and Boreham Wood, Hornchurch, Sutton United and Wealdstone are all at home on Tuesday.

In the National League itself, Sutton and Hartlepool United are two sides with 100% records after the early sets of fixtures and they meet at Gander Green Lane on Saturday at 1230pm. The early kick-off means you should be able to combine this with the FA Cup tie between Sutton Common Rovers and Haywards Heath Town which starts at 3pm a little to the east at Carshalton Athletic.

In east London, Dagenham & Redbridge have made a great start and on Saturday they face one of their biggest matches of the season as Torquay United make the long trip up from Devon for what could be a highly important National League South game.

With three wins out of three, Dartford have got off to a flyer in the Isthmian Premier and they host Welling United in a derby on Saturday in what is the pick of this week's seventh-tier games.

Below this, the focus is mainly on the FA Cup with the competition now at its Preliminary Round stage.

The two ties which stand out for me are the south-east London derby between Cray Valley PM, who famously made it to the First Round in 2023, and AFC Greenwich Borough. The hosts play a level above so should start as favourites on paper. Whilst in east London, a big crowd should be expected at the Old Spotted Dog where ninth tier Clapton CFC look to cause an upset against the higher ranked Concord Rangers who were a National League South side as recently as 2023.

Throughout the week, we've also got a few bonus fixtures in the Extra Preliminary Round of the FA Youth Cup for U18 teams. It's only non-league clubs at the moment but these matches increase your options of what to see, particularly on often quiet Monday nights. 

In the women's game there are a couple of eye-catching friendlies on Sunday with Arsenal hosting Paris FC at Boreham Wood and big spending London City Lionesses taking on Atletico Madrid at their home in Bromley, giving what could be your first chance to see the likes of Mary Earps, Alexia Putellas and Mapi Leon in action for their new club.

In the FAWNL, Hashtag United receive a visit from Exeter City in Tier 3.

In Tier 4, it's a big day in west London where local rivals and two of the pre-season title favourites Actonians and QPR meet at Bedfont Sports for a game which could have a significant bearing on the rest of the campaign.

As always, please make sure you check with clubs before you travel just in case a game has been called off or the venue or kick-off time has changed - this is highly possible for some of the lower non-league clubs and development matches. Also, please let me know if anything is wrong or missing.

Details on all of this week's games can be found on the following match maps. If you've never used them before, please note that when there is more than one match at a specific ground you'll only be able to see individual match pins if you zoom right in. If you don't, the pins obscure each other and you might miss them. To avoid this, you can also scroll down the list of games on the drop down menu at the top of the map page to make sure you get all the information. Games are listed from top to bottom in date order so Monday's games (yellow pin) will appear first and Sunday's (orange pin) last. Games are also ranked in terms of status so the higher the division, the higher up the list they will appear on each day.

Donate to TLFG's coffee-drinking fund here

Also if you're unfamiliar with the English league structure I indicate the level at which an individual league sits in the national 'pyramid' with the Premier League at the top (Level 1) and various minor leagues at the bottom (Level 10). Typically a top level game will see crowds of anywhere between 20,000-60,000. These figures will gradually decline as you go down the leagues until you get to Levels 8-10 where attendances of 150 or less are most common.

It should also be noted that the top four levels are for fully professional teams. Level 5 has a mixture of professional and semi-professional teams, while Levels 6-10 will see most players paid but it will vary from no more than travel expenses at the bottom, right up to several hundred pounds a week at the top.

MIDWEEK MATCH MAP

Monday fixtures - yellow pin

Tuesday fixtures - green pin

Wednesday fixtures - turquoise pin

Friday fixtures - black pin

WEEKEND MATCH MAP

Saturday fixtures - blue pin

Sunday fixtures - orange pin

    

GET INVOLVED

If you're going to see a game, whether you're a local or a visitor, please let me know what you've  been up to. If you're interested in reviewing a ground in the London area for this blog then get in touch. I also very much welcome photos of your football travels.

NEED HELP?

Got any questions about visiting London? Don't hesitate to ask - be they football or more general travel/touristy queries. I do not charge for this advice like some other sites so don't hold back!

You can contact TLFG through the comments section below, via X/Twitter, Instagram or even by good old email.

Has this blog been helpful? Donate to TLFG's coffee-drinking fund here 

TLFG: 10-16 August 2026

Welcome to TLFG as the season takes another step towards its full launch.

The weekend just gone saw all clubs in the EFL take part in the Carabao Cup and all the remaining leagues below the fourth tier get underway.

Clubs in the Championship, League One and League Two play their first league games this weekend before the Premier League finally starts the week after - so we're nearly there.

On Saturday I headed back out to the suburbs of north-west London, where I spent my formative years, to watch my non-league favourites Harrow Borough.

In the closing weeks of last season, it was announced that the club was in serious financial trouble and could meet its end seven years short of its centenary, which would have been a great shame.

Harrow Borough began their season against Jersey Bulls

A supporters' trust was set up, which I joined, but the narrative over the summer was generally very gloomy.

However, somehow the season has begun with manager Wayne Carter on a new contract and many of last season's players retained.

This is all very encouraging but equally mysterious as the situation portrayed was truly grim and no official announcement has been made to the contrary - not that I'm aware of anyway.

Still playing in the eighth tier Isthmian League South Central, their opening day opponents were newly promoted Jersey Bulls.

The long journey to and from the Channel Islands necessitated a 2pm kick-off presumably to fit in the return flight.

When I lived locally I'd be at pretty much every game but in recent years this has gone down to handful and last season I didn't go at all so it was good to get back to the place which had kindled my love of non-league.

The ground hadn't changed at all since my last visit but the pitch, like many other grass ones, was visibly suffering from the drought conditions we've been experiencing in the capital and the groundstaff had done really well to make it as good as it was.

Boro were competitive and there was nothing between the teams until late in the first half when a poor pass by debutant keeper Trent Carter-Rogers was intercepted allowing Lorne Bickley to score.

It was a real shame as he played well for the rest of the game but, despite a fair bit of Harrow pressure after the break, it proved to be the decisive moment and the Bulls went home with a 1-0 win.

So a disappointing start to the campaign for Harrow but at least there was a start and we can all be thankful for that.

It was also great to meet TLFG readers Stewart M who has just begun volunteering at the club and sports journalist Matt Nash who works on Leyton Orient's programme and plays a huge part in arranging International Surrey games towards the end of each season - a pleasure to meet you both.

As many of you know, Actonians have become the main focus of my football watching and following the recent investment in the club by the McCaffrey family, things have really changed.

Since Thursday, the side have been in Manchester at a pre-season training camp getting ready for the new campaign which starts this Sunday coming.

The thought of such a thing would have been unthinkable a few months ago as the budget required would've been way beyond our means.

Now the players are travelling in luxury coaches, staying in hotels for multiple nights, booking training pitches for several sessions, taking part in team-bonding activities away from the pitch and today they're set to play Tier 3 side Liverpool Feds.

It's no more than the girls deserve for the hard work they've put in but we need to start getting the fans in next season to make this even slightly sustainable.

The opening match is against one of the title favourites Chatham Town at their stadium in Kent.

I've never been before but have been told their facilities are pretty impressive and the photos look great.

I do intend to go and will probably make a bit of a trip of it, taking the family to see some of the sights of neighbouring Rochester while I'm at it.

Right, that's about it from me - have a great week.

THE WEEK AHEAD

Although only friendlies, a number of Premier League clubs are hosting matches at their main stadiums this week.

Arsenal get things underway with a game against Como at the Emirates on Wednesday.

West London will be a hive of activity on Saturday afternoon with Chelsea playing Real Sociedad at 2pm, Brentford entertaining Eintracht Frankfurt at 3pm and Fulham finishing things off at 4pm against VfB Stuttgart.

If you're nearer north London, Tottenham Hotspur welcome TSG Hoffenheim to the THS at 3pm.

The EFL starts in London on Saturday with the highest level game being the visit of Derby County to Charlton Athletic in the Championship. 

A day later, Watford get things up and running against Southampton who will be looking to recover their reputation after last season's spying scandal which saw them thrown out of the play-offs.

Back on Saturday in League One, Leyton Orient will hope to build on their EFL Cup win over Oxford United when they take on Sheffield Wednesday - a game which should provide one of their biggest crowds of the season.

Barnet came close to a play-off spot in League Two last season and they're expected to do well again. On Saturday they play last season's play-off finalists Salford City for what should be a real test of their promotion credentials.

When it comes to non-league, Sutton United began their campaign with a 3-0 win at Woking and should do well against Altrincham who lost their opening game. In Ruislip, Wealdstone welcome early leaders Harrogate Town who thumped Solihull Moors 5-2 in their first game following relegation from the EFL.

On Friday night, there's an intriguing looking game between Dagenham & Redbridge and Farnham Town in the National League South. The Daggers are rebuilding with new investors having fallen from the third tier (at their peak) down to the sixth. Whilst Farnham are rapidly climbing the pyramid and are now at the highest level in their history. 

Earlier in the week there are a few FA Cup replays with the all-eighth tier contest between Raynes Park Vale and Merstham probably topping the bill for me.

We're also lucky enough to have the opening rounds of the FA Trophy and FA Vase this weekend too.

In the former, I fancy the localish derby between Cobham and Egham Town and in the latter, it's got to be the very real derby between Romford and Ilford. 

The two biggest games in women's football take place on Sunday in south London where it's opening day in the FAWNL.

AFC Wimbledon host AFC Bournemouth in the third tier, whilst newly promoted Fulham see Portsmouth head to Motspur Park fresh from their relegation from the WSL2.

As always, please make sure you check with clubs before you travel just in case a game has been called off or the venue or kick-off time has changed - this is highly possible for some of the lower non-league clubs and development matches. Also, please let me know if anything is wrong or missing.

Details on all of this week's games can be found on the following match maps. If you've never used them before, please note that when there is more than one match at a specific ground you'll only be able to see individual match pins if you zoom right in. If you don't, the pins obscure each other and you might miss them. To avoid this, you can also scroll down the list of games on the drop down menu at the top of the map page to make sure you get all the information. Games are listed from top to bottom in date order so Monday's games (yellow pin) will appear first and Sunday's (orange pin) last. Games are also ranked in terms of status so the higher the division, the higher up the list they will appear on each day.

Donate to TLFG's coffee-drinking fund here

Also if you're unfamiliar with the English league structure I indicate the level at which an individual league sits in the national 'pyramid' with the Premier League at the top (Level 1) and various minor leagues at the bottom (Level 10). Typically a top level game will see crowds of anywhere between 20,000-60,000. These figures will gradually decline as you go down the leagues until you get to Levels 8-10 where attendances of 150 or less are most common.

It should also be noted that the top four levels are for fully professional teams. Level 5 has a mixture of professional and semi-professional teams, while Levels 6-10 will see most players paid but it will vary from no more than travel expenses at the bottom, right up to several hundred pounds a week at the top.

MIDWEEK MATCH MAP

Monday fixtures - yellow pin

Tuesday fixtures - green pin

Wednesday fixtures - turquoise pin

Friday fixtures - black pin

WEEKEND MATCH MAP

Saturday fixtures - blue pin

Sunday fixtures - orange pin

    

GET INVOLVED

If you're going to see a game, whether you're a local or a visitor, please let me know what you've  been up to. If you're interested in reviewing a ground in the London area for this blog then get in touch. I also very much welcome photos of your football travels.

NEED HELP?

Got any questions about visiting London? Don't hesitate to ask - be they football or more general travel/touristy queries. I do not charge for this advice like some other sites so don't hold back!

You can contact TLFG through the comments section below, via X/Twitter, Instagram or even by good old email.

Has this blog been helpful? Donate to TLFG's coffee-drinking fund here 

TLFG: 3-9 August 2026

Greetings everyone and welcome to the latest TLFG.

Despite there being no senior games on Monday or Thursday, it's still a big week with the EFL Cup, National League, Isthmian League, Southern League and FA Cup all getting underway.

I'm not sure where I'll go yet but Hilltop in the FA Cup on Friday is fairly handy, whilst QPR and Harrow Borough both have home games on Saturday.

Over the last week, I've been to a couple of women's games.

On Thursday I headed up to The Hive to watch Barnet's women's team, and one of Actonians' biggest rivals, London Bees.

A former Tier 2 team, they've been down in the fourth tier for two seasons now and finished fourth on both occasions.

Although not winning promotion, they've had great runs in the FA Cup which have made them a lot of money.

This is probably one of the reasons why they've been able to recruit a lot of players this summer, many with Tier 3 experience.

The FA Cup gets underway this weekend 

However, pre-season had been a struggle up to this point with back-to-back 5-0 home defeats to Real Bedford and Norwich City and a 1-1 draw against Wycombe Wanderers.

Here they welcomed fifth tier newcomers Hammersmith.

The west London club, who play and train next to Actonians at the Gunnersbury Park Sports Hub, are incredibly ambitious and have won two consecutive promotions. 

On arrival, I ran into former A's and QPR assistant manager Sinead Friel and it was a pleasure to watch the game with her and get her insight on things. It was also great to run into TLFG reader and Hendon board member Bryan R and have a quick catch up.

In the first half there was very little between the two sides, with both fashioning reasonable chances.

However, not long before the interval, the hosts scored from a corner and that was it for the Hammers.

A series of substitutions and a lower-level of fitness to their semi-pro opponents saw it end 5-0 as Dan McKimm's side went through the gears to wrap up a comfortable win.

The most disappointing part of pre-season for me has been the new management regime at Actonians dispensing with the services of captain Mara Bramwell - a decision which has rocked fans and players alike.

She was present at this game and I had a brief chat with her on the way out. I assumed she'd signed for one of the teams on show but it turned out she's signed for Chatham Town who are strongly favoured to win the title and who Actonians play on the first day of the season.

Having spent most of my life watching men's football where the players are distant demi-gods who the regular fan has little to no contact with, being told this face-to-face by the player themselves was a surreal experience - it made the disappointment even greater. Anyway, good luck to her.

With Mara's departure confirmed, the first team travelled to Tier 3 Norwich City on Sunday for a behind closed doors friendly which meant I headed down to Sussex instead to watch the reserves at Three Bridges.

The Crawley-based club have a really nice modern ground with a 3G pitch which was officially opened on Non-League Day 2025.

Sadly for the A's they had a threadbare squad with only one sub and this must have contributed to their 3-0 loss on a blazing hot afternoon.

Once in a while, my family invite themselves along to one of my football away days and this was one of those occasions.

As an added bonus, my mother-in-law came along too.

Rather than come to the game, they all went to check out Tilgate Park which I'd never heard of.

For a family day out, I'd give it a big thumbs up - it has a lake with pedalos, zoo, Go Ape, adventure playground, a woodland area, walled garden and possibly mini golf too. Who knew you could have so much fun in Crawley?

Anyway, that's more than enough for me - enjoy your week!

THE WEEK AHEAD

Without doubt, the most high-profile match of the week takes place at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday where Arsenal welcome German club Borussia Dortmund for the glorified friendly which is the Emirates Cup.

However, if proper competitive football is more to your liking, it's also the start of the season for EFL clubs. Unusually, though, their first games will all be in the EFL Cup rather than the league.

For me, the tie of the round is the derby between QPR and Millwall on Saturday at 2pm. 

Just behind that, I'd recommend the match at the London Stadium. West Ham United are now back in the second tier after 14 years and they've landed a home draw against Portsmouth.

Watford, AFC Wimbledon, Bromley and Leyton Orient also have home ties too.

Saturday is also opening day in the National League.

Beaten in last season's play-off final, Boreham Wood start their campaign against Tamworth but it's also a huge day in east London where newly promoted Hornchurch play their first ever game in the fifth tier against Kidderminster Harriers.

The Isthmian League and Southern League also get going on Saturday - the biggest crowd will be found at Champion Hill where Dulwich Hamlet host newly promoted Maldon & Tiptree who've been hit by all kinds of scandal in the close season, so it will be interesting to see how they fare.

Hanworth Villa also make their debut in the seventh tier following promotion with a home game against Taunton Town.

Although there are a small number of league games, the main focus below the seventh tier will be on the opening, or Extra Preliminary, round of the FA Cup.

This is where the 'Road to Wembley' begins so if you're going to attempt seeing a game in every round, you need to pick where to start now.

Wembley FC always used to be a good place to start but they play in the 10th tier these days and don't qualify any more, so you'll need to select someone else.

As a result of groundshares, the first batch of ties take place on Friday night - Kingstonian play their first competitive game at Ashford Town (Middlesex) against Hastings United, whilst Hilltop welcome Grays Athletic to Silver Jubilee Park.

On Saturday, I really like the look of the tie between Buckhurst Hill and Barking which is a repeat of last season's Essex Senior League play-off final which the hosts won.

The biggest crowd of the round in London could well come at the Old Spotted Dog where Clapton CFC host Benfleet in an all-ESL tie.

In the far north-west of town, Everett Rovers play their first ever FA Cup tie against local rivals Kings Langley.

There aren't any glaringly obvious games with cupset potential but I think Isthmian League club Hendon could have their hands full with last season's ESL runners-up SOUL Tower Hamlets who claimed the scalps of higher-ranked clubs Hanworth Villa and Ascot United in last season's competition.

If you want to make a whole weekend of it then Erith & Belvedere have a tie against Billingshurst at Park View Road on Sunday too.

At the beginning of the week, there are lots of ninth and tenth tier league games - Abbey Rangers and Camberley Town are among the early leaders in the CCL Premier South and they meet on Tuesday.

In the tenth tier, Brook House and May & Baker have got off to good starts and both have midweek home games.

Women's teams are all still in pre-season - the pick of the friendlies sees Fulham welcome fellow third-tier side Rugby Borough to their training ground at Motspur Park on Sunday.

Hashtag United narrowly avoided relegation from the third tier last season and on Sunday they host Moneyfields who lost in the southern Tier 4 play-off final.

Whilst up at The Hive complex, London Bees take on fellow fourth-tier side Maidenhead United. Despite the industrial level of signings they've made, the north London club have only won one game in pre-season and that was against lower-level opposition 

As always, please make sure you check with clubs before you travel just in case a game has been called off or the venue or kick-off time has changed - this is highly possible for some of the lower non-league clubs and development matches. Also, please let me know if anything is wrong or missing.

Details on all of this week's games can be found on the following match maps. If you've never used them before, please note that when there is more than one match at a specific ground you'll only be able to see individual match pins if you zoom right in. If you don't, the pins obscure each other and you might miss them. To avoid this, you can also scroll down the list of games on the drop down menu at the top of the map page to make sure you get all the information. Games are listed from top to bottom in date order so Monday's games (yellow pin) will appear first and Sunday's (orange pin) last. Games are also ranked in terms of status so the higher the division, the higher up the list they will appear on each day.

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Also if you're unfamiliar with the English league structure I indicate the level at which an individual league sits in the national 'pyramid' with the Premier League at the top (Level 1) and various minor leagues at the bottom (Level 10). Typically a top level game will see crowds of anywhere between 20,000-60,000. These figures will gradually decline as you go down the leagues until you get to Levels 8-10 where attendances of 150 or less are most common.

It should also be noted that the top four levels are for fully professional teams. Level 5 has a mixture of professional and semi-professional teams, while Levels 6-10 will see most players paid but it will vary from no more than travel expenses at the bottom, right up to several hundred pounds a week at the top.

MIDWEEK MATCH MAP

Tuesday fixtures - green pin

Wednesday fixtures - turquoise pin

Friday fixtures - black pin

WEEKEND MATCH MAP

Saturday fixtures - blue pin

Sunday fixtures - orange pin

    

GET INVOLVED

If you're going to see a game, whether you're a local or a visitor, please let me know what you've  been up to. If you're interested in reviewing a ground in the London area for this blog then get in touch. I also very much welcome photos of your football travels.

NEED HELP?

Got any questions about visiting London? Don't hesitate to ask - be they football or more general travel/touristy queries. I do not charge for this advice like some other sites so don't hold back!

You can contact TLFG through the comments section below, via X/Twitter, Instagram or even by good old email.

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