Newly-promoted Worthing will make their National League debut at Carlisle United on 8 August, a 720-mile round trip to Brunton Park where up to 17,000 fans could attend. The Sussex club won the National League South title last season, ending a 140-year wait to reach non-league's top tier. Fellow newcomers Hornchurch, promoted via the play-offs under Daryl McMahon, host Kidderminster Harriers in their first fifth-tier game since the club's 1881 founding. Robbie Savage's Forest Green Rovers open at home to Halifax Town, while play-off finalists Boreham Wood welcome Tamworth.

Relegated League Two sides Harrogate Town and Barrow — each dropping after six years in the EFL — host Solihull Moors and visit Hartlepool United respectively. AFC Fylde, National League North champions, host Wealdstone. The regular season concludes 24 April 2027, with the play-off final at Wembley on 8 May deciding the second promotion spot. The first two rounds will air on DAZN with the traditional 3pm blackout lifted.

Hornchurch's Hornchurch Stadium (capacity 3,500) is the division's smallest ground; they host Carlisle on 27 February 2027 after visiting Cumbria on 22 August. Former West Ham defender Anton Ferdinand joins McMahon's coaching staff. Worthing's rise from the eighth tier in 2016 mirrors Hornchurch's two promotions in three seasons from the Isthmian Premier Division.

The fixture list signals a division in transition: six clubs are either newly promoted or freshly relegated, reshaping competitive dynamics. Carlisle, under new boss Rob Elliot, face immediate pressure to capitalise on home advantage against novice opposition. For Worthing and Hornchurch, survival is the first benchmark — but the DAZN exposure and Wembley pathway offer unprecedented visibility for clubs historically confined to the non-league shadows.