The Andoni Iraola era gets underway in July as Liverpool return for pre-season under a new coach with new ideas. Here is your guide to the month ahead.
It has only been five weeks since Liverpool ended their season against Brentford, but already, we are on the cusp of the real football beginning to return.
With Iraola taking over, supporters will be reading into every hint and clue as to how he will approach the job, and we’ll be here to provide all the updates on the team, as well as those players who could be coming through the door.
*All dates and times are BST
July 3 – the 1st anniversary of Diogo Jota’s death
LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND - Wednesday, April 2, 2025: Liverpool's Diogo Jota celebrates after scoring the winning goal during the FA Premier League match between Liverpool FC and Everton FC, the 246th Merseyside Derby, at Anfield. Liverpool won 1-0. (Photo by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)
First, though, July 3 will be a date for remembrance this year as it will mark 12 months since the death of Diogo Jota and his brother, Andre Silva.
It will be a tough day for his close family and friends, so we will be sending them our support.
The permanent memorial to Jota, named ‘Forever 20’, is nearly complete and will be in place outside Anfield on 97 Avenue, where thousands of tributes were left in the weeks after his passing.
July 13 (approx) – Pre-season begins
Position Players Reporting Back
Goalkeepers Giorgi Mamardashvili, Freddie Woodman, Armin Pecsi
Defenders Joe Gomez, Giovanni Leoni, Jeremy Jacquet, Milos Kerkez, Kostas Tsimikas, Jeremie Frimpong, Calvin Ramsay
Midfielders Dominik Szoboszlai, Curtis Jones, Harvey Elliott, Trey Nyoni, Stefan Bajcetic, James McConnell
Forwards Federico Chiesa, Rio Ngumoha, Jayden Danns
Those involved in the World Cup can’t be in training straight away – we won’t see any of those eight players until the US tour – so Iraola will begin pre-season with a young squad.
While some youngsters could return earlier, the senior players should start to return to Kirkby around July 13.
Injury permitting, there should be about 19 first-team figures in Iraola’s first session.
July 19 – World Cup final
A supporter holds aloft a replica World Cup trophy during the FIFA (Pic by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)
The longest World Cup in history finally draws to a close on July 19, with a maximum of two Liverpool players able to be involved in the final.
It is expected that each player will take three weeks off after exiting the World Cup, meaning that those who reach the semis will likely miss the full US tour.
The players who went out in the round of 32, including Florian Wirtz, Virgil van Dijk, Ryan Gravenberch and Cody Gakpo, should join up with the squad ahead of the Reds’ friendly against Wrexham at the end of the month.
Round of 32: June 28 – July 3
Round of 16: July 4 – July 7
Quarter-finals: July 9 – July 11
Semi-finals: July 14 – July 15
Final: July 19
July 21 (approx) – Fly to Chicago
LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND - Tuesday, April 7, 2026: Liverpool's Milos Kerkez (L) and Dominik Szoboszlai during a training session at the AXA Training Centre ahead of the UEFA Champions League Quarter-Final 1st Leg match between Paris Saint-Germain FC and Liverpool FC. (Photo by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)
With the first friendly taking place on July 25, Liverpool will fly out to the US in the week leading up to the match against Sunderland.
The team will have their base in Chicago for the duration of their American trip, but they will fly to Nashville and New York for games before playing Leeds in Chicago.
July 25 – Sunderland in Nashville
LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND - Saturday, May 9, 2026: Liverpool's Dominik Szoboszlai drinks from a plastic Lucozade bottle before the FA Premier League match between Liverpool FC and Chelsea FC at Anfield. The game ended in a 1-1 draw. (Photo by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)
Kicking off at 11pm on July 25, Liverpool will play Sunderland at Geodis Park where MLS club Nashville SC play their home matches.
It will be the first chance to see Iraola’s Reds live and, like all of Liverpool’s pre-season games, it will be broadcast on LFC TV.
Expect a young side to feature due to Liverpool’s World Cup participants not having yet returned.
July 30 – Wrexham in New York
NEW YORK, NEW YORK, USA - Wednesday, July 24, 2019: A general view of Yankee Stadium with a soccer pitch at half-time during a friendly match between Liverpool FC and Sporting Clube de Portugal on day nine of the club's pre-season tour of America. (Pic by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)
A trip to Yankee Stadium in the Bronx follows, as Liverpool play a friendly against Wrexham for the first time since 2007.
It will be some occasion in New York; imagine telling a Wrexham fan just a few years ago that they would be playing Liverpool at the home of baseball’s New York Yankees!
This should be the first time we see the likes of Wirtz and Van Dijk, with the returning internationals likely to get minutes from the bench to ease them back into action.
Kick off is at 12.30am on July 30 and we expect the ground to be full!
The Reds will then head back to Chicago to prepare for their final friendly in the US, against Leeds on August 2.