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Sep 23It seems barely believable that we are already almost at the end of 2022, a year that has brought thrills and spills galore on our screens, from football to boxing and rugby union to motorsport.
Don't fret though, because 2023 has some blockbuster events in store, along with the BT Sport staples you have grown accustomed to over the years.
Read on or click on your chosen sport below to find out what you can expect from your BT Sport subscription during what promises to be a phenomenal 2023…
Football
Once again, BT Sport has some of the most hotly anticipated football fixtures of the year as we bring you exclusive coverage of the Champions League, Europa League, Europa Conference League and a load more games from the Premier League, Serie A and Ligue 1 to look forward to.
Our first Premier League match of 2023 sees in-form Fulham host Chelsea in a west London derby on 12 January, two days before reigning champions Manchester City head to Old Trafford hoping to replicate their 6-3 thrashing of the Red Devils in October. The following weekend, Graham Potter's men travel to Liverpool in what could be a pivotal game in the top-four race.
On 4 February, current leaders Arsenal will still be hoping they are still top of the tree when they head to Everton, with east meeting west a week later as West Ham welcome the Blues to the London Stadium. The Gunners are back in action on February 18 when they are set to face Aston Villa, who are managed by their old boss, Unai Emery. We round off February as Eddie Howe's high-flying Newcastle play Brighton.
The Champions League - a competition the Magpies will be hoping to play in during 2023/24 - is back in a big way too, with all four English sides progressing to the round of 16. One tie stands out among them all as Liverpool and Real Madrid clash in a rematch of last season's final, which was won by Vinicius Junior's 59th-minute effort at the Stade de France.
Man City will be hoping to move one step closer to avenging last term's semi-final heartbreak against Los Blancos when they face RB Leipzig, while Chelsea, winners in 2020/21 against Pep Guardiola's men, also face German opposition in the form of Jude Bellingham's Borussia Dortmund.
Tottenham meanwhile have their famous 2011 triumph over Milan at this stage of the competition fresh in their memories as former Inter head coach Antonio Conte looks to write a new chapter in the north London side's European story.
In the Europa League, Manchester United face Barcelona for a place in the last 16 in a fixture far more associated with the continent's top-tier competition, while Arsenal and West Ham await their opponents in the next round. All these tantalising ties take place across February and March.
In Serie A, Napoli have a first Scudetto in 32 years firmly in their sights as they sit eight points clear of reigning champions and second-placed Milan heading into the resumption following the World Cup, with the first set of matches starting on 4 January.
The next few months could be the last chance to see Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe and Neymar weave their magic together as Paris Saint-Germain look set to retain the Ligue 1 crown that they prised from Lille's head in 2021/22.
For full football TV listings, check out our What's On page to stay up to date with everything coming your way.
Rugby Union
BT Sport remains the place to be to watch domestic and European rugby, with 2023 all set to a year of high drama.
With a new look following the introduction of three South African sides, the Champions Cup will be a captivating watch as Leinster look to go one better than last season and clinch the trophy on home soil at Dublin's Aviva Stadium following a heartbreaking loss to countryman Ronan O'Gara's La Rochelle in the 2021/22 showpiece in Marseille.
Domestically, Leicester will have to try and defend their Premiership title without inspirational head coach Steve Borthwick, who has succeeded Eddie Jones in the England job, with Richard Wigglesworth calling time on his playing career to take over the reins at Welford Road on an interim basis.
After being seen off by the Tigers at Twickenham in June, Saracens appear the team to beat this time as they enter 2023 comfortably top of the pile, while Sale Sharks are the division's surprise package as Alex Sanderson's men currently occupy a play-off place.
Find out more about the year ahead by going to our rugby union fixtures pages, which are broken down by competition.
Cricket
The year in cricket on BT Sport starts off with the men's and women's Super Smash competitions, before Australia host South Africa at the Sydney Cricket Ground looking to make it a series whitewash over the Proteas, with coverage of the first day's play beginning on 3 January at 11.30pm UK time.
The two nations then do battle in the ODI arena on 12, 14 and 17 January, with Australia's women also participating in the format against Pakistan on 16, 18 and 21 January before facing the Women in Green in T20 encounters on 24 and 26 January ahead of the defence of their World Cup defence in the shortest format.
In February, New Zealand host England in a two-match Test series before facing Sri Lanka in a multi-format affair across March and April which comprises two Test, three ODIs and three T20s.
In addition to all that, BT Sport will remain the home for all West Indies men's and women's domestic and international cricket, including the Caribbean Premier League as Jamaica Tallawahs aim to defend their title.
UFC
Yet again, the UFC delivered as 2022 brought shocks and barnburners, as well as hinting at extremely tasty match-ups to come.
The year ended with three first-time belt-holders as Leon Edwards became just the second British champion in the franchise after ending Kamaru Usman's streak as the welterweight king in emphatic fashion. Alex Pereira also shocked the world by TKOing Israel Adesanya to change the complexion of the middleweight division and Islam Makhachev made light work of Charles Oliveira to claim the vacant lightweight title.
The first confirmed bout of 2023 sees Nassourdine Imavov and Kelvin Gastelum throw down in Las Vegas on 14 January, before two title fights a fortnight later at UFC 283 in Rio de Janeiro as national hero and former light-heavyweight champion Glover Teixeira faces Jamahal Hill and Deiveson Figueiredo aims to maintain his flyweight supremacy in an unprecedented UFC quadrilogy fight against Brandon Moreno.
The pair's three previous contests have all taken place since December 2020, with their record currently standing at 1-1-1, Figueiredo winning the latest contest in January. Will it be the Brazilian or the Mexican who finally takes the spoils on this occasion?
February has an absolute blockbuster in prospect at UFC 284 when Australian Alexander Volkanovski will enjoy the backing of a hostile Perth crowd in his lightweight title showdown against Makhachev, and March could see Edwards and Usman run things back at UFC London with the record between the two standing at 1-1 after Usman's triumph way back in 2015. Meanwhile Aljamain Sterling is set to defend his bantamweight crown for the third time, with Henry Cejudo the latest challenger.
There could also be some surprises in store as the year progresses, with the return of Conor McGregor mooted following his gruesome loss to Dustin Poirier in the summer of 2021 - the last time he entered the Octagon. Michael Chandler has been rumoured as a possible comeback opponent for the Notorious.
And keep your eyes peeled for a rematch between Adesanya and Pereira in the summer, as well as a long-awaited return to the sport for Jon Jones, while on the British front, the likes of Arnold Allen, Paddy Pimblett and Muhammad Mokaev look to further boost their credentials in the sport. Pimblett is likely to resume his war of words with Ilia Topuria as talk of a meeting between the pair continues to swirl.
Boxing
Boxing on BT Sport belonged to Tyson Fury in 2022 as The Gypsy King dispatched Dillian Whyte and Derek Chisora, with the latter win setting tongues wagging about a heavyweight unification fight against Oleksandr Usyk in 2023 (although WBO interim title-holder Joe Joyce will have something to say about that after KOing Joseph Parker).
Before that though, there is another title fight to grace our platforms as Anthony Yarde takes a shot at history against IBF, WBC and WBO light-heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev in a fight pencilled in for 28 January at Wembley Arena.
Yarde goes into the fight off the back of a third-round knockout of Stefani Koykov in November, showing no signs of ring rust after 11 months with no competitive action.
Daniel Dubois also continues his rebuild following his 2020 loss to Joyce, since stopping Bogdan Dinu, Joe Cusumano, Trevor Bryan and Kevin Lerena, while the likes of Hamzah Sheeraz, Royston Barney-Smith and David Adeleye are all set to appear on your screens during an intriguing next 12 months.
Motorsport
Petrolheads assemble! We’ve got another enthralling year of motorsport coming ahead in 2023, including MotoGP, the World Rally Championship, Extreme E and a host of other racing events.
Pecco Bagnaia avenged his second-placed finish to Fabio Quartararo in 2021 by pipping the Frenchman to the title last season, with the Italian's ninth-placed finish in the final race of the campaign in Valencia enough to get the job done.
It was Bagnaia's first MotoGP title, coming four years after his Moto2 title and subsequent step to the premier class as Ducati tasted victory in the riders' standings for the first time since Casey Stoner triumphed in 2007.
British rally fans can continue to follow the fortunes of their heroes in the all-action WRC on next year, extending our partnership with the sport that began in 2014.
Since then, we have tracked the rise of young British drivers like Elfyn Evans and Gus Greensmith to become established stars of the line-up.
Ahead of another jam-packed season, we’ll bring you live coverage of every stage as the season begins in earnest on 19 January in Monte-Carlo, with Kalle Rovanpera looking to defend his title.
Head to our Motorsport page to keep up to date with our latest offerings from the world of racing.
