The FA Community Shield will return to Cardiff for the first time in 20 years on Sunday as Arsenal take on Manchester City at the Principality Stadium. Mikel Arteta's Premier League winners will go in search of their first silverware of the new season as they take on reigning FA Cup champions City in the annual curtain-raiser to the top flight season.
While the fixture is traditionally played at Wembley Stadium, it has been moved to Cardiff due to Canadian artist The Weeknd playing five dates at the home of English football. The Principality Stadium previously hosted six Community Shields between 2001 and 2006, while the new-look Wembley was under construction. The fixture has also been played at Villa Park and Leicester City's King Power Stadium in recent years.
The match is set to see thousands of football fans descend on the Welsh capital this weekend, with much of the city centre set to be shut off. Here's everything you need to know.
Road closures
Several road closures are set to be put in place ahead of the game, with Cardiff Council confirming that Scott Road and Park Street will be closed from 7am onwards. In addition, the following city centre roads will be closed between 10am and 8pm:
- Kingsway, from its junction with North Road to its junction with Duke Street
- Cowbridge Road East, from its junction with Cathedral Road to its junction with Westgate Street
- Tudor Street, from its junction with Clare Road to its junction with Wood Street (access for residents and traders will be permitted via Fitzhammon Embankment)
- Plantagenet Street and Beauchamp Street, from their junctions with Despenser Place to their junctions with Tudor Street (access for residents and traders will be permitted)
- Duke Street
- Castle St
- High Street
- St Mary Street
- Caroline Street
- Wood Street
- Central Square
- Westgate Street
- Quay Street
- Guildhall Place
- Golate
- Havelock Street
Meanwhile, Station Terrace and Guildford Street, from the Newport Road junction to the Churchill Way junction, will be restricted to bus access only during the designated closure periods. Station Terrace will face an additional two-hour closure, running from 4.30pm to 6.30pm, enabling Queen Street Station to maintain safe operations.
Sections of the Civic Centre will only be for event parking, limited commuter parking, loading activities and access to private car parks. Roads affected include King Edward VII Avenue, Museum Avenue, City Hall Road, College Road, and Gorsedd Gardens Road. Penarth Road will also be shut 30 minutes before the match ends, and will remain closed for up to an hour following the final whistle on safety grounds for rail passengers arriving at and departing from the station.
Parking
Both car parks at Cardiff Central station will be closed, however the multi-storey car park will remain open. Other available city centre car parks include: North Road Car Parks, St David's Shopping Centre, John Lewis, Capitol Shopping Centre, NCP (Adam Street, Dumfries Place and Greyfriars Road). The council has also arranged for specific parking for fans travelling to the event, with coach and minibus parking for Arsenal fans available at Lloyd George Avenue. Car, coach and minibus parking for Manchester City fans is available around the Civic Centre. The cost on the day is £20 per car and £30 per coach or minibus.
Rail services
Transport for Wales (TfW), Great Western Railway (GWR), and CrossCountry have aligned operations alongside Network Rail to provide extra services and strengthen train capacity for the event. A queuing system will be in place at both Cardiff Central and Cardiff Queen Street stations from 4.45pm onwards, with passengers travelling to the Valleys or the Vale of Glamorgan directed to Queen Street after the event. All other queues including Ebbw Vale and Maesteg will be at Cardiff Central station. Supporters have been strongly encouraged to allow extra time to get to Cardiff Central station and to check their onward connections before travelling, particularly if catching the last services of the evening.
