Overview
- The Emirates Cup match kicked off at 2pm BST on Sunday 9 August 2026 at the Emirates Stadium as Arsenal sought a response to a 3-1 friendly loss to Real Betis.
- Captain Martin Ødegaard returned to the matchday XI after his World Cup break and started as Arteta managed minutes for players returning from holiday.
- New signing Bruno Guimarães was presented to fans after joining for around £75 million but was not included in the squad because he is short of match fitness.
- Both clubs used rotated squads to protect fitness with Arsenal missing several senior internationals and long‑term absentees including William Saliba while Dortmund monitored knee issues for Carney Chukwuemeka and kept Emre Can and Nico Schlotterbeck sidelined.
- Arsenal offered free UK coverage via their official YouTube channel following recent streaming problems, and the fixture doubles as one of the last preparations before the Community Shield against Manchester City next weekend.