How to watch Arsenal vs Man City in the Community Shield for free
It doesn't feel like a lot of time has passed since the last Premier League season came to an end. Maybe that's because we've been treated to plenty of action from the Women's World Cup. We're not complaining, because the break between seasons can often feel like a lifetime.
The good news is that the 2023/24 Premier League season is not too far away. We know that because the curtain-raiser for the next top-flight English football season is taking place this weekend.
If you are interested in watching the Community Shield for free from anywhere in the world, we have all the information you need.
What is the Community Shield?
The Football Association Community Shield is English football's annual match contested at Wembley Stadium between the champions of the previous Premier League season and the holders of the FA Cup. Manchester City won both competitions last year, so in this case the league runners-up (Arsenal) provide the opposition.
When is the Community Shield in 2023?
Arsenal and Manchester City will head to Wembley Stadium this weekend:
Arsenal and Manchester City (ITV) — 4:00 p.m. BST on Aug. 6
The game will be shown live on ITV One. Alternatively, you can live stream this fixture on ITVX.
How to watch the Community Shield for free
The good news for fans in the UK is that live coverage of the Community Shield is being offered on ITV1 and ITVX. If you're based in the UK, you should have no issues watching this fixture on any device with ITVX. But what about fans from around the world?
Normally, ITVX is only available to streamers connecting from the UK, but with a VPN, you can bypass this geo-restriction to stream the Community Shield for free from anywhere in the world. VPNs can hide your real IP address and connect to a secure server in another country, meaning you can access sites like ITVX from outside the UK. This process might sound complicated, but it's actually really straightforward:
Sign up for a streaming-friendly VPN (like ExpressVPN)
Download the app to your device of choice (the best VPNs have apps for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, and more)
Open up the app and connect to a server in the UK
Sign in to ITVX
Watch the Community Shield from anywhere in the world
The best VPNs for unblocking streaming sites are not free, but most do offer free trials or money-back guarantees. By using these offers, you can unblock ITVX without committing with your cash. This is obviously not a long-term solution, but it does give you plenty of time to watch the Community Shield for free.
What is the best VPN for ITVX?
There are a lot of VPNs that can reliably unblock ITVX, but ExpressVPN continues to lead the way. ExpressVPN is the best service for unblocking streaming services, for a number of reasons:
Servers in 94 countries including the UK
Easy-to-use app available on all major devices including iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, and more
Strict no-logging policy so your data is secure
Fast streaming speeds free from throttling
Up to five simultaneous connections
30-day money-back guarantee
A one-year subscription to ExpressVPN is on sale for £82.82 and includes an extra three months for free — 49% off for a limited time. This plan also includes a year of free unlimited cloud backup and a 30-day money-back guarantee. The money-back guarantee means you can unblock ITVX to watch the Community Shield, and then recover your investment after the final whistle.
Watch the Community Shield for free with ExpressVPN.
Joseph Green is the Global Shopping Editor for Mashable. He covers VPNs, headphones, fitness gear, dating sites, streaming, and shopping events like Black Friday and Prime Day.
Joseph is also Executive Editor of Mashable's sister site, AskMen.
