United will travel to Orient for the first competitive fixture of the season, which will be the first of at least three meetings against the fellow League One side.

The game will take place on the weekend of Saturday, August 8, with full details, including timings and tickets, to be announced in due course, says the club.

It follows the launch of the League One fixtures earlier this week, where Oxford United will play MK Dons at home in the first game of the campaign.

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The U’s return to the third tier next season after suffering relegation from the Championship last term.

Former Arsenal midfielder Aaron Ramsey was appointed as Oxford’s new head coach this week, replacing Bloomfield, who was sacked earlier this month.

Competitive action begins on the weekend of August 7 in the Carabao Cup, with the first-round draw set for Thursday evening.

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After two years in the second tier, the Yellows are looking to bounce back quickly under their new boss and will begin the new season at home against newly-promoted MK Dons on Saturday, August 15.

Oxford faced the Dons in the FA Cup third round last season when United were in the Championship, and their opponents were still in League Two, Oxford winning on penalties after a 1-1 draw at Stadium MK.

The opening-day clash has been selected for TV coverage on Sky Sports+ and will be an early kick-off at 12:30pm.

The Welshman was announced yesterday as the new permanent head coach of Oxford United following the sacking of Matt Bloomfield, while ex-Premier League midfielder Wilshere is currently in charge of Luton Town, also in League One.

The two have met in the dugout once before, on the last day of the 2024/25 Championship season, when Wilshere’s Norwich City beat Ramsey’s Cardiff City 4-2.

Both were in interim positions at the time, with Wilshere completing two competitive games in charge to Ramsey’s three.

Wilshere, who retired from football in 2022 at the age of 30, is now heading into his first full season with Luton.

After being hired to his permanent managerial job in October, he guided the club to seventh in League One, one point off the play-off spots.

Oxford United head coach Aaron Ramsey (Image: Oxford United)

He also won the Vertu Trophy after beating Stockport County 3-1 in the final.

Ramsey, who left boyhood club Cardiff in June 2025 after they finished bottom of the Championship, retired from professional football in April at the age of 35, and is now also in his first permanent role.

Asked at his inaugural U’s press conference if he had received any communication from Wilshere upon his appointment, Ramsey replied: “No, I’m still waiting for that message!

“No, Jack obviously is a great friend and teammate of mine back in the day, so it’ll be good and interesting to come up against him later on in the season.”

The two first played together as teenagers in September 2008, when they made their league debuts for Arsenal two minutes apart in a victory over Blackburn Rovers.

Oxford United CEO Tim Williams (left), head coach Aaron Ramsey (centre) and head of football operations Ed Waldron (right) (Image: Newsquest)

Their last game as teammates was defeat against Atletico Madrid in the 2017/18 Europa League semi-final.

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In the intervening decade, they made 101 appearances playing together, winning consecutive FA Cup finals in 2014 and 2015.

Both coaches had injury-hit playing careers, with Ramsey suffering a broken leg in 2010, as well as recurrent hamstring issues later on which saw him average just 11 full games per season in the seven seasons following departure from Arsenal in summer 2019.

Luton Town manager Jack Wilshere (Image: Ben Whitley/PA Wire)

Wilshere, meanwhile, suffered a series of ankle problems throughout his career, beginning with a stress fracture in a pre-season friendly in 2011, which eventually led to his early retirement.

The two men have shown early promise as coaches similar to their playing careers: Wilshere’s deliverance of silverware at Luton represents the club’s first trophy since winning League One in 2018/19.

Ramsey, meanwhile, has been tipped as a future Wales manager by current national head coach Craig Bellamy.

The U’s return to the third tier next season after suffering relegation from the Championship last term.

Former Arsenal midfielder Ramsey was appointed as Oxford’s new head coach this week, replacing Bloomfield who was sacked on last weekend.

Competitive action begins on the weekend of August 7 in the Carabao Cup with the first-round draw set for Thursday evening.

After two years in the second tier, the Yellows are looking to bounce back quickly under their new boss and will begin the new season at home against newly-promoted MK Dons on Saturday, August 15.

Oxford face the Dons in the FA Cup third round last season when United were in the Championship and their opponents were still in League Two, Oxford winning on penalties after a 1-1 draw at Stadium MK.

The opening-day clash has been selected for TV coverage on Sky Sports+ and will be an early kick-off at 12:30pm.

Will Lankshear wheels away after scoring against MK Dons (Image: ©Jason Dawson)

They then travel to Stevenage before facing Thames Valley rivals Reading at the Kassam to see out the opening month.

The U’s face the Royals again on February 6 at the Select Car Leasing Stadium.

On Boxing Day, United host Plymouth Argyle who are managed by another former Arsenal midfielder and Ramsey’s old teammate Jack Wilshere.

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Aaron Ramsey has been appointed the new Oxford United manager (Image: Oxford United)

A trip to newly-promoted Bromley on December 29 separates Boxing Day with a New Year’s Day visit to Leyton Orient.

The final day of the season sees Ramsey’s Yellows travel to Sheffield Wednesday in what many would expect to be a clash in and around the top of the table.

The penultimate game of the season sees the hosting of 2023/24 play-off semi-final opponents Peterborough United.

The earlier fixture against fellow-relegated outfit Wednesday is on December 1 at the Kassam.

Oxford play the third demoted club, Leicester City, early on in the season, travelling to the King Power Stadium on September 5, with the reverse fixture scheduled for February 13.

Mark Harris celebrates scoring Oxford United’s second goal against Leicester (Image: ©Jason Dawson)

The Easter schedule sees the U’s play host to Leyton Orient on Good Friday (March 26) before visiting Blackpool on Easter Monday (March 29).

October, January and April are the most jam-packed months, with six matches scheduled in each.

New boss Ramsey will be looking to prove his worth in his first permanent head coach role and has the opportunity to instantly endear himself to the fans in his first game at home to the Dons.

The 35-year-old was announced as Bloomfield’s replacement on Tuesday evening, just hours before England faced Ghana in the FIFA World Cup.

Ramsey spoke to the media for the first time the following morning, saying: “I knew that this was the right place for me. It’s a huge honour and a privilege to be in this position.”