Manchester City support group has urged the club’s fans to boycott the Community Shield match against Arsenal on 6th August.
After Manchester City won the Premier League and FA Cup, Arsenal were confirmed as their opponent for the pre-season matchup at Wembley.
Pep Guardiola’s treble-winning men will meet with Mikel Arteta’s Gunners in the capital on Sunday, August 6 after the FA decided to go with a 5.30pm local time kick-off.
The support group, whose name is 1894, has been backed for trying to organize a boycott, revealing ‘significant travel challenges’ for matchday fans that would want to make the journey to London.
Several fans were forced to endure long traffic delays on their way to the final at Wembley as a result of the strike.
This year’s decision to move the cup to the home of English Football has caused an uproar, especially from the 1894 supporters group as they call on City fans to miss the match and donate their ticket proceeds to a local food bank instead.
1894 support group in a message to Manchester City fanbase said: “1894 urge you to join us in boycotting the Community Shield game against Arsenal on August 6th.”
“The 17:30 kick-off time presents significant travel challenges from Manchester, making it difficult for many loyal supporters to attend. It’s time match-going fans were treated as a priority rather than an afterthought.”
“By boycotting this fixture, we aim to send a strong message to the FA and ITV about the impact scheduling has on fans. Our collective absence from the stadium will demonstrate our discontent and advocate for fairer game times in the future.”
“We understand the love and dedication you have for City, but we believe that our collective action will bring about positive change.”
“We ask fans, who are in a position to do so, to make either a £10 donation, or the equivalent cost of a match ticket, to MCFC Food Bank or another local charity.”
The MCFC Food Bank has also backed the call by tagging the kick off time as “atrocious” and having been made with “zero consideration to supporters”.
Manchester City V Arsenal
FA recently confirmed that the 2023 FA Community Shield will take place on Sunday, 6 August, 2023 at Wembley Stadium.
The winners of the 2022-23 Emirates FA Cup and Premier League, Manchester City, will play against the league’s runners-up, Arsenal, and the fixture will be broadcast live on ITV and ITVX at 5.30pm BST.
The season’s traditional ‘curtain raiser’ will return to the home of English football in its 100th anniversary year after the 2022-23 edition was re-located to Leicester City’s King Power Stadium due to the UEFA Women’s EURO Final.
When is the 2023/24 Community Shield?
The match at Wembley will take place on Sunday, 6 August, 2023.
