Arsenal have won the Community Shield on 17 occasions
Manchester City have featured in six of the last eight Community Shield matches
The Principality Stadium in Cardiff is hosting for the first time since 2006
The 2026 Community Shield takes place at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff, with Arsenal and Manchester City featuring in the season curtain-raiser.
Arsenal ended their 22-year wait for a Premier League title last season, having previously endured a run of three successive second-place finishes in the top flight.
Manchester City won both the Carabao Cup and FA Cup last term, but finished seven points behind the Gunners as they missed out on the league title for a second successive season.
Those achievements set up a fourth Community Shield meeting between these two with Arsenal having won all three previous clashes, albeit on penalties most recently in 2023.
The latest Community Shield odds are available on LiveScore Bet
Team news
Arsernal will be missing both Jurrien Timber and William Saliba due to injury and it could be a few weeks before either are ready to return.
Due to their World Cup exertions, Declan Rice, Bukayo Saka, Mikel Merino and Martin Zubimendi will likely start on the bench.
The same could be expected of City's Erling Haaland and Elliot Anderson, while Rodri underwent surgery on a back injury and will not be involved.
The latest Community Shield odds are available on LiveScore Bet
The stats
This will be the fourth Community Shield meeting between Arsenal and Man City and the Gunners have yet to taste defeat, lifting the trophy in 1934, 2014 and 2023.
This will be the seventh staging of the Community Shield at the Principality Stadium, with Arsenal winning the 2002 and 2004 editions in Cardiff.
Manchester City have won the Community Shield on seven occasions, while Arsenal have lifted the trophy 17 times, ranking only behind Manchester United.
Arsenal’s last three triumphs in the Community Shield have come on penalties after a 1-1 draw in normal time.
Pep Guardiola won the Community Shield three times from six appearances.
Six of the last nine Community Shield matches have gone to penalties.
City have won the last two meetings with Arsenal but had won none of the previous six, although four were draws after 90 minutes
The latest Community Shield odds are available on LiveScore Bet
Prediction
Having ended their long wait for a Premier League title, Arsenal could now be entering a period of success over the next few years.
Adding players such as Bruno Guimaraes and Christos Tzolis indicates Arteta is prioritising quality over quantity when it comes to his playing squad.
As such, the Gunners start the season as favourites to retain their title and this Community Shield curtain-raiser could be an important match.
Enzo Maresca is following in the footsteps of Pep Guardiola at City, but may find life will not be easy despite having served under the Spaniard at the Etihad Stadium.
The former Chelsea boss has a strong squad at his disposal and while this clash with Arsenal will not be the priority, gaining any sort of momentum could be crucial going into the opening weeks of the league season.
Given the spate of draws in this fixture, it would surprise no one should this go all the way to penalties, with the Gunners coming out on top in the shootout as they did in 2023.
Correct score prediction: Arsenal 1-1 Manchester City (5/1 with LiveScore Bet)
