The Weeknd's Wembley Stadium show sees Community Shield moved to Wales
Premier League champions Arsenal will play FA Cup winners Manchester City at Principality Stadium in Cardiff
Arsenal will play Manchester City for the Community Shield this month, with the game set to be played in Cardiff's Principality Stadium for the first time since 2006.
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The English season's traditional curtain-raiser, as usual, sees the Premier League winners from the previous campaign play the FA Cup champions.
Historically, the game did not have a permanent venue and was shared around club stadiums from when it was first played in 1908 until the seventies.
From 1974 to 2000, it was played at Wembley, the home of English football, and was hosted at the North West London venue until it was demolished.
In the intervening years from 2001 to 2006, while the new Wembley was being built, the Community Shield, which was known as the Charity Shield until 2002, was played in Cardiff at the Principality Stadium, which is officially called the Millennium Stadium.
And in 2026 it will be back in the Welsh capital for one year only, and Welsh fans have The Weeknd to thank.
Read also: Manchester City win FA Cup for eighth time after beating Chelsea 1-0 in final
When is the Community Shield?
The game will kick off at 3pm on Sunday, August 16.
Arsenal will look to win the trophy for the first time since 2020 as they look for a successful start to their Premier League defence campaign.
The Gunners might have Bruno Guimarães available if the Brazilian midfielder completes an expected £75m transfer from Newcastle.
The Community Shield will be Enzo Maresca's first competitive game in charge of Manchester City.
Having left Chelsea last season, the Italian has taken over from Pep Guardiola.
Why is Arsenal v Manchester City not at Wembley?
The game will not be played at Wembley as Canadian singer The Weeknd is performing his After Hours til Dawn tour at the stadium on five nights between August 14 and 19.
Originally, there was not set to be a clash, but the start of the Premier League was put back by one week due to the World Cup.
The FA said: “Due to alterations to the 2026-27 football calendar, next season’s Premier League will begin over the weekend of Saturday 22 August, and Wembley Stadium connected by EE is unavailable on Saturday 15 and Sunday 16 August due to pre-planned concerts.”