The Weeknd is why Arsenal vs Man City isn’t being played at Wembley, and the amount of money involved is huge!
The FA Community Shield is happening this Sunday afternoon, but it won’t be at Wembley because of an unusual scheduling clash with The Weeknd.
Instead of the usual spot, Arsenal and Manchester City will play the Community Shield at Cardiff’s Principality Stadium. This traditional season opener usually takes place at Wembley, but this year it’s moving about 150 miles away.
Why the change? The Weeknd has a big concert at Wembley on the same day as the match, so the stadium isn’t available. He’s actually performing there five times in six days in mid-August as part of his After Hours Til Dawn tour.
The Community Shield is a special game where the Premier League champions and FA Cup winners play each other to raise money for grassroots projects, national charities like the Alzheimer’s Society, and local causes chosen by clubs from the FA Cup. It’s seen as football’s unofficial season kick-off, with the Premier League starting the following weekend on August 22.
This year’s match between Arsenal and Manchester City will kick off at 3pm on Sunday, but the FA decided to move it to the Principality Stadium because Wembley was booked for concerts on August 15 and 16.
This is only the third time since Wembley reopened in 2007 that the Community Shield will be held somewhere else, and the first time at the Principality Stadium since 2006. That stadium also hosted the Community Shield, FA Cup final, and EFL Cup final several times between 2001 and 2007.
While some football fans might be disappointed not to see the game at Wembley, the concerts there show just how much money they can bring in. Tickets for The Weeknd’s shows start at £60.25 for seats with a limited view and can go all the way up to £336.45 for standard seats. Standing tickets cost £145, and Gold Circle spots near the stage are £177.75 each.
Though exact attendance figures aren’t confirmed, the concerts are expected to fill Wembley with about 87,000 to 90,000 fans. Using a rough average ticket price of £198.35, a full house of 87,000 could bring in around £17.26 million from ticket sales alone, and even more with 90,000 fans.
That’s not even counting VIP options, which can be pricey. Gold and Diamond hospitality packages cost £599 and £799 per person, including food, drinks, and a private host. A 20-person private box at £799 each could bring in nearly £16,000 just from tickets.
When you compare this to the Community Shield, where regular tickets cost from £30 to £55 and premium ones £75, the difference is huge. Even if Wembley was sold out with every ticket at £55, the Community Shield would only generate about £4.95 million—less than a third of what a Weeknd concert could make.
Of course, these numbers don’t all go to Wembley itself. The money is split between the stadium, promoters, artists, and others, with taxes and costs taken out. But it still shows how much more income concerts can bring compared to football matches.
This is why concerts are so important not just for Wembley but also for the FA. In the 2023/24 year, Wembley hosted 10 big concerts, including Taylor Swift’s huge Eras Tour. The FA even called summer 2025 the busiest summer in Wembley’s history, with top acts like Oasis, Dua Lipa, Lana Del Rey, Linkin Park, and Guns N’ Roses all performing.
The FA says growth in sponsorships, events, and their Experiences by Wembley program has helped improve their financial health. So, while the Community Shield has moved this year, Wembley’s concerts are keeping the stadium busy and bringing in big money.