In association football a goalkeeper may be said to "keep a clean sheet" if they prevent their opponents scoring any goals during an entire match.
Since the Premier League's formation at the start of the 1992–93 season, 14 goalkeepers have managed to keep 100 or more clean sheets in the Premier League.
During the 1997–98 season, Peter Schmeichel became the first player to keep 100 Premier League clean sheets.
Petr Čech, while playing for Chelsea in the 2004–05 season, holds the record for most clean sheets kept in a single season, with 24. The record for consecutive clean sheets was also set by Čech, who became the first goalkeeper to keep ten consecutive clean sheets; Edwin van der Sar later eclipsed this when he went 14 games without conceding in 2008–09 for Manchester United.
The first goalkeepers to keep a clean sheet in the Premier League were Tim Flowers and Erik Thorstvedt on the opening day of the inaugural season in a 0–0 draw between Southampton and Tottenham Hotspur; all other goalkeepers conceded that day.
Each year the goalkeeper who has kept the most clean sheets during the Premier League campaign is awarded the Premier League Golden Glove award. First presented in 2004–05, five goalkeepers have won the award, with Joe Hart holding the record for most wins at four.
Petr Čech became the keeper with the highest number of clean sheets while playing against AFC Bournemouth on 28 December 2015.