Today’s match will be the 102nd holding of the Community Shield. The competition began in 1908 but took hiatuses during both world wars.
In its early days, the competition’s participants varied greatly, including several matches pitting amateurs against professionals. Today’s format of the previous season’s league champions against the FA winners was originally introduced in 1921 and became commonplace starting in 1930, albeit with several exceptions down the years.
The match was referred to as the Charity Shield until 2002, when the Charity Commission forced the FA to change the name.
