The Premier League resumed on Wednesday after a three-month hiatus, with Aston Villa and Sheffield United players taking a knee to show their support for the Black Lives Matter movement.
Coronavirus restrictions mean the drama is being played out with no fans in the stands but football-starved supporters will be able to feast on 92 televised games crammed into less than six weeks.
Defeat for Manchester City, who host Arsenal later on Wednesday would leave Liverpool on the brink of their first English top-flight title for 30 years.
But Aston Villa and Sheffield United kicked off the return in Birmingham.
In front of a huge global audience, players and staff protested racial injustice in solidarity with the worldwide protests following the death of American George Floyd while in police custody.
“Aston Villa and Sheffield United were proud to stand in solidarity with the actions of the players and coaching staff of both football clubs,” the clubs said in a joint statement.
“In the first Premier League fixture of Project Restart both clubs hope that the act of ‘taking a knee’ will send a strong message of unity and amplify the many messages of support from Premier League players and the wider football family,” they added.
All players will wear Black Lives Matter (BLM) on the back of their shirts where names are normally printed for the first 12 matches of the restart.
A BLM logo will feature on shirts for the remainder of the season along with a badge thanking Britain’s health workers for their efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic.