Liverpool vs Crystal Palace Community Shield not on free-to-air TV due to a change in broadcasters

Liverpool and Crystal Palace face off in the 2025 Community Shield on Sunday, with the game no longer being shown on free-to-air television due to a change in broadcasters

Liverpool are set to face Crystal Palace this weekend in a bid for the first piece of silverware of the season, the Community Shield. The Reds will be taking on last season’s FA Cup winners at Wembley Stadium on Sunday.

Last season saw Liverpool dominate the Premier League under Arne Slot’s leadership, finishing a clear 10 points ahead at the top.

On the other hand, Oliver Glasner’s Crystal Palace made history when Eberechi Eze’s goal clinched them a 1-0 victory over Manchester City in the FA Cup final, marking their first major trophy win.

This means that Sunday’s match will be Palace’s first-ever appearance in the annual fixture, which has been a mainstay of the football calendar for nearly 120 years, reports the Liverpool Echo.

In contrast, Liverpool have claimed the Community Shield 16 times, with their most recent victory in 2022 against City. Only Manchester United (21) and Arsenal (17) have won the trophy more times.

However, despite fans’ anticipation for Sunday’s match, they won’t be able to watch it on free-to-air TV due to a significant change announced for this year’s game.

ITV, which has traditionally broadcast the Community Shield, has lost the rights to this year’s match.

The match coverage has moved to a subscription service, with live and exclusive broadcasting on TNT Sports and discovery+.

Supporters can watch TNT Sport 1 from 2pm for build-up coverage, with kick-off at 3pm and transmission concluding by 6pm.

Prior to this weekend’s clash, the FA issued a statement confirming the broadcaster change.

“The 2025 FA Community Shield match will be contested by the 2024-25 Emirates FA Cup winners, Crystal Palace, and 2024-25 Premier League champions, Liverpool,” the announcement detailed.

“The game will take place at Wembley Stadium connected by EE on Sunday 10 August. It will be broadcast live and exclusively on TNT Sports 1, with kick-off at 3pm BST.”

This shift arrives more than a year after ITV was reported to be relinquishing their rights to show live FA Cup fixtures from the 2025/26 campaign.

Under a new deal, the BBC will take over as the free-to-air broadcaster for the prestigious cup tournament, screening 14 live matches, whilst TNT Sports will also televise games.