Why Isn't Coronation Street On? The ITV1 Football Nights Moving Corrie and Emmerdale
The gist: When ITV1 shows a live evening match, Coronation Street and Emmerdale come off for the night. The episodes aren't lost; the numbering simply carries on the next weeknight, and there's no 7am ITVX release on the football day either.
| Date | Match on ITV1 | Kick-off | What happens to the soaps | How sure |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sat 26 Sep | England v Spain (Nations League) | 7.45pm BST | Nothing — no soaps on Saturdays | Fixture listed |
| Tue 29 Sep | Czech Republic v England (Nations League) | 7.45pm BST | No Emmerdale, no Corrie | Confirmed by ITV's guide |
| Sat 3 Oct | Croatia v England (Nations League) | 5pm BST | Nothing — Saturday | Fixture listed |
| Tue 6 Oct | England v Czech Republic (Nations League) | 7.45pm BST | Both soaps expected to be off | Fixture listed, guide not out yet |
| Wed 28 Oct | Liverpool v Chelsea (Carabao Cup, fourth round) | 7.45pm GMT | Both soaps expected to be off | Fixture listed, guide not out yet |
| Thu 12 Nov | England v Croatia (Nations League) | 7.45pm GMT | Both soaps expected to be off | Fixture listed, guide not out yet |
The clocks go back on Sunday 25 October, which is why the last two kick-offs read GMT.
Why isn't Coronation Street on tonight?
If it's a weeknight, the answer is almost always live football on ITV1. Emmerdale and Corrie share a single hour, 8pm to 9pm, and a match with a 7.45pm kick-off swallows all of it. ITV doesn't push the soaps to a later slot; it drops them for the evening.
We saw it on Wednesday 16 September, when the Carabao Cup took ITV1 from 7.30pm and Coronation Street missed a night. Next Tuesday is the same story with an England match instead.
Is Coronation Street on Tuesday 29 September?
No. ITV's guide for that day runs The Chase at 5pm and the regional and evening news until 7pm, then hands ITV1 to the UEFA Nations League from 7pm until News at Ten at 10.05pm. Czech Republic v England kicks off at 7.45pm.
TVmaze's episode lists back that up from the soap side. Both shows have episode 178 on Monday 28 September and episode 179 on Wednesday 30 September, with nothing in between. That leaves four episodes of each soap that week rather than the usual five.
Does ITVX still get the episode at 7am on a football day?
No. The 7am ITVX drop is the same episode that airs that night, so with no broadcast there's nothing to release. On 29 September, the next new Corrie and Emmerdale arrive on ITVX at 7am on Wednesday 30th.
ITV's guide for the 29th does still list older episodes, badged Classic Coronation Street and Classic Emmerdale, elsewhere in ITV's schedule during the day. Those are archive runs, not the missing instalment.
Which other nights will football move Corrie and Emmerdale?
Live Football on TV lists three more weeknight fixtures for ITV1 before the end of November: England v Czech Republic on Tuesday 6 October, Liverpool v Chelsea in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday 28 October, and England v Croatia on Thursday 12 November. All three kick off at 7.45pm.
ITV's guide only runs about a week ahead, so none of those is confirmed on the soap side yet. On past form each one clears the 8pm hour, but treat those three as likely rather than certain until ITV's own guide lists them.
Two England Women play-off legs are also listed as "ITV TBC": Friday 9 October at 5.30pm and Tuesday 13 October at 7.30pm. The channel isn't settled, so we haven't counted either as a clash.
Does ITV football affect EastEnders or Hollyoaks?
No. EastEnders is on BBC One and Hollyoaks on E4, so ITV's matches leave them alone; EastEnders stays at 7.30pm and Hollyoaks at 7pm on their usual nights.
BBC football can do the same job, though. On Thursday 24 September, BBC One Wales is showing Portugal v Wales, and EastEnders moves to BBC Two Wales at 7.30pm for viewers there; this week's soap schedule has the detail.
What should I watch instead on a football night?
The quickest fix is the previous night's episode, if you haven't seen it yet: it's been on ITVX since 7am that day. After that, the rest of the week's soaps run to their normal pattern, which our night-by-night soap guide lays out, and the full ITV1 soap timetable is in our Corrie and Emmerdale times guide.
Questions readers ask
Do Corrie and Emmerdale make up the missed night with a double bill?
Not in the weeks we've checked. The run just resumes the next weeknight, one episode a night, so the week ends up shorter.
Is Emmerdale on when Corrie isn't?
No, on football nights both go. They sit back to back in the same hour; our Emmerdale guide covers its own slot in detail.
Are the soaps on at the weekend instead?
No. None of the four soaps airs on Saturday or Sunday; our weekend guide explains what's available to stream. If you're in the mood for ITV1's teatime quizzes before the match, our sister site has The Chase guide.
Sources
- itv.com TV guide, Tuesday 29 September (ITV1: The Chase 17:00, ITV Evening News 18:30, UEFA Nations League 19:00–22:05, ITV News at Ten 22:05 UK time; no Emmerdale or Coronation Street)
- Live Football on TV: football on ITV (fixtures and kick-off times for 26 September to 12 November, including the two England Women play-off legs listed as ITV TBC)
- TVmaze: Coronation Street episode list (Series 67 episodes 178 on 28 September and 179 on 30 September, nothing on the 29th)
- TVmaze: Emmerdale episode list (Series 55 episodes 178 on 28 September and 179 on 30 September, nothing on the 29th)