Liverpool’s game against Arsenal in the Community Shield will almost certainly be played behind closed doors later this month, according to reports in the UK.

The British government abandoned plans for test events following a spike in COVID-19 cases in certain parts of the UK, but they are expected to update their advice on August 15th.

However, even if the guidance is changed, the FA will not have enough time to organise the event, with just two weeks to put plans in place for fans. Only a few thousand would have been allowed inside Wembley anyway, and it is believed the cost of staging an event with such a low number of people would be prohibitive.

The finances, combined with the time restrictions, have led to the FA to decide that there is no feasible way that the season‘s curtain-raiser could be used as a way of piloting the return of fans to stadiums.