Community Shield to Relocate Due to 2012 Wembley Clash
February 16, 2011
The final of the London 2012 Olympics soccer tournament will be played at Wembley Stadium on Saturday 11 August next year, according to the Games’ schedule released yesterday, February 15. This will then impact on the inaugural curtain-raising event for the English Premier League – the Community Shield – which will need to relocate to accommodate for the Olympics match.
The Community Shield was scheduled for the following day, coinciding with the Closing Ceremony of the Games, due to the Premier League kick-off being put back in order to steer clear of the Olympics.
Speculation that the FA would use the opportunity to take the game overseas – as happens regularly with the Italian Super Cup which was in Beijing last year – has since been quashed by the FA. One would suggest that the game would move to Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium, but this is also not a possible alternative, with the men’s third place play-off being held at the venue on August 10.
An FA spokesman said: “The Community Shield take place at the traditional time at a prestigious stadium in England.” This makes Manchester United’s Old Trafford ground the favourite, since its last Olympic game is the men’s semi-final on Tuesday, August 7.
Related Discussion: FA Community Shield – by Michael Cunnah