The 10 Best 2026–27 Preseason Friendlies to Watch

Silverware is on the table during three of this summer’s most anticipated preseason games.

Arsenal and Man City lock horns in the Community Shield. | Copa/Getty Images

Preseason is well underway across Europe as clubs seek to build momentum before their league campaigns begin in August.

Many of the continent’s behemoths have already been in action, an array of whom are undergoing transitional summers under new management. Players are desperate to impress their coaches—both established stars and academy up-and-comers—and will have the chance to shine in some seismic friendlies.

Elite sides collide throughout the preseason schedule, sometimes even in the hunt for silverware.

With that in mind, here are the most intriguing and high-profile friendlies worth watching before the new competitive campaign begins.

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Liverpool vs. Wrexham (July 29)

Liverpool won Andoni Iraola’s first match in charge on their U.S. tour. | Bill Barrett/ISI Photos/Getty Images

• Date: Wednesday, July 29 / Thursday, July 30
• Kickoff Time: 7:30 p.m. ET / 4:30 p.m. PT / 12:30 a.m. BST (July 30)
• Location: New York City, United States
• Stadium: Yankee Stadium

Liverpool began the Andoni Iraola era with a stylish 4–2 win over Premier League foes Sunderland in the opening fixture of their U.S. tour. Next up are Hollywood-owned outfit Wrexham, who currently reside in England’s second tier but have already beaten Manchester United this summer.

Stateside supporters will flock to Yankee Stadium on Wednesday to witness a rare duel between Liverpool and the Welsh side. Iraola is still without a host of star first-teamers following the World Cup, roster depth has only been exacerbated by injuries, but the club’s young gems will once again hope to propel the Reds to victory.

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Birmingham City vs. Barcelona (July 31)

Barcelona travel to England. | JOSE JORDAN/AFP/Getty Images

• Date: Friday, July 31
• Kickoff Time: 2:45 p.m. ET / 11:45 a.m. PT / 7:45 p.m. BST
• Location: Birmingham, England
• Stadium: St Andrew’s

Liverpool are not the only titan taking on opponents from the English Championship, with Barcelona’s tour of England involving a clash with Tom Brady’s Birmingham City this Friday. For home supporters at St Andrew’s, it will be quite the occasion.

The upcoming clash will be Barcelona’s first of the summer. Hansi Flick is still missing a myriad of star players due to the World Cup—eight of which won the tournament with Spain, including Lamine Yamal and Pedri. Still, a relatively strong side, aided by a smattering of La Masia talents, will take to the field in the West Midlands as La Blaugrana seek to make a winning start to their preseason schedule.

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Chelsea vs. Tottenham Hotspur (Aug. 1)

The London rivals face off in Australia. | Harriet Lander/Chelsea FC/Getty Images

• Date: Saturday, Aug. 1
• Kickoff Time: 5:45 a.m. ET / 2:45 a.m. PT / 10:45 a.m. BST
• Location: Sydney, Australia
• Stadium: Accor Stadium

There will be little ‘friendly’ about a meeting between fierce London rivals Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur down under. Both Premier League giants have journeyed to Australia for part of their preseason prep, with Sydney’s Accor Stadium the stage for a tantalizing battle which will require a very early morning (or late night) for fans in the United States.

Xabi Alonso will be overseeing only his second match as Chelsea boss, while Roberto De Zerbi continues in the opposite dugout after saving Spurs from relegation last season. Both sets of players are still adapting to the intense demands of their coaches, making Saturday’s battle difficult to predict.

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Manchester City vs. Inter (Aug. 1)

A repeat of the 2022–23 Champions League final is on the cards. | Domenic Aquilina/NurPhoto/Getty Images

• Date: Saturday, Aug. 1
• Kickoff Time: 7:30 a.m. ET / 4:30 a.m. PT / 12:30 p.m. BST
• Location: Kowloon, Hong Kong
• Stadium: Kai Tak Sports Park

Several hours after Chelsea take to the field, their former manager Enzo Maresca coaches his first match as Pep Guardiola’s successor at Manchester City. The Italian takes on a side from his homeland, Serie A champions Inter, in a repeat of the 2022–23 Champions League final, which the English side won courtesy of a goal from wantaway midfielder and Real Madrid target Rodri.

City supporters will be desperate to see what changes Maresca makes to the team’s tactical setup after a decade of Guardiola, although few significant alterations are expected as the Manchester club continue to adopt a possession-based, passing philosophy.

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Real Madrid vs. Fiorentina (Aug. 1)

José Mourinho is once again overseeing preseason in Madrid. | Antonio Villalba/Real Madrid/Getty Images

• Date: Saturday, Aug. 1
• Kickoff Time: 12 p.m. ET / 9 a.m. PT / 5 p.m. BST
• Location: Klagenfurt, Austria
• Stadium: Sportpark Klagenfurt

It’s all change at Real Madrid this summer—well, sort of. Their new manager is actually their old manager, with José Mourinho reprising his role in the Santiago Bernabéu dugout 13 years on from his last spell with the record European champions. There are fresh signings, however, with Bernardo Silva, Denzel Dumfries, Ibrahima Konaté and Marc Cucurella all recruited so far, even if not all of them will be involved against Fiorentina on Saturday.

Los Blancos have a fairly tame preseason schedule and are not taking on any of Europe’s heavyweights, but a clash with Fiorentina in Austria will still push them. The match is a repeat of the 1957 European Cup final, which the Spaniards won 2–0.

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Milan vs. Inter (Aug. 5)

The Milan derby takes center stage on Aug. 5. | Giuseppe Bellini/Getty Images

• Date: Wednesday, Aug. 5
• Kickoff Time: 6 a.m. ET / 3 a.m. PT / 11 a.m. BST
• Location: Perth, Australia
• Stadium: Optus Stadium

Four days after their meeting with Man City, Cristian Chivu’s Inter take on bitter local rivals Milan—although San Siro has been replaced as the venue by Perth’s Optus Stadium. The latest iteration of the Derby della Madonnina will be a feisty affair, even if there is nothing riding on this unofficial game.

Inter have seriously struggled in this fixture over recent years despite the general inconsistency of their neighbors, with Milan unbeaten in the last seven duels—five of which have ended in victory. Before embarking on their current unwanted streak, the Nerazzurri had won six Milan derbies on the spin.

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Manchester United vs. Paris Saint-Germain (Aug. 8)

Man Utd’s youngsters have already starred this summer. | Ash Donelon/Manchester United/Getty Images.

• Date: Saturday, Aug. 8
• Kickoff Time: 11 a.m. ET / 8 a.m. PT / 4 p.m. BST
• Location: Gothenburg, Sweden
• Stadium: Nya Ullevi

Manchester United will have played three fixtures by the time they face European champions Paris Saint-Germain in Sweden on Aug. 8, with the Red Devils having started their first preseason under Michael Carrick earlier than many of their domestic rivals.

After meetings with Wrexham, Rosenborg and Atlético Madrid, this will be an even tougher test for United, who will have to be at their best to come away from the friendly with victory. PSG will have opened their preseason campaign against Mallorca three days prior and should have a sizeable chunk of their Champions League-winning stars available for the meeting in Gothenburg.

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Paris Saint-Germain vs. Aston Villa (Aug. 12)

Paris Saint-Germain once again contest the UEFA Super Cup. | Giuseppe Maffia/NurPhoto/Getty Images

• Date: Wednesday, Aug. 12
• Kickoff Time: 3 p.m. ET / 12 p.m. PT / 8 p.m. BST
• Location: Salzburg, Austria
• Stadium: Red Bull Arena

Four days after PSG take on Man Utd, they play against Europa League champions Aston Villa and their former coach Unai Emery in a second successive UEFA Super Cup. Tottenham Hotspur were the previous opponents in 2025, with the Ligue 1 champions needing penalties to overcome a team led by Thomas Frank at the time.

Villa have lost two key players in the transfer window, Youri Tielemans and Morgan Rogers joined Man Utd and Chelsea respectively, but they are always good value for an upset under Emery. They came up against PSG in the 2024–25 Champions League and nearly knocked out the eventual winners at the quarterfinal stage.

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Arsenal vs. Manchester City (Aug. 16)

Mikel Arteta (L) and Enzo Maresca (R) reunite. | David Price/Arsenal FC/Getty Images

• Date: Sunday, Aug. 16
• Kickoff Time: 10 a.m. ET / 7 a.m. PT / 3 p.m. BST
• Location: Cardiff, Wales
• Stadium: Principality Stadium

English soccer’s traditional curtain-raiser will take place a week before the new Premier League season begins, as Cardiff’s Principality Stadium hosts the Community Shield between top-flight champions Arsenal and FA Cup victors Manchester City. The rivals clashed three times last season, with the latter winning twice and drawing once—including victory in the Carabao Cup final.

Two Guardiola mentees collide when Mikel Arteta and Maresca take to the touchline and while neither coach will be overly concerned with the result of the match in the Welsh capital, victory would lay down an early marker ahead of what seems another inevitable Premier League title fight between the clubs in 2026–27.

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Borussia Dortmund vs. Bayern Munich (Aug. 22)

Der Klassiker makes an early season appearance. | ANP/Getty Images

• Date: Saturday, Aug. 22
• Kickoff Time: 2:30 p.m. ET / 11:30 a.m. PT / 7:30 p.m. BST
• Location: Dortmund, Germany
• Stadium: Signal Iduna Park

The Bundesliga season commences later than the Premier League and La Liga, meaning the Franz Beckenbauer Supercup will take place on Aug. 22—a week before the league campaign begins. An early installment of Der Klassiker will be staged between Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund at the latter’s Signal Iduna Park.

As Bayern won both the Bundesliga and DFB Pokal last season, Dortmund have qualified for the match by virtue of their second-placed league finish. They have been regularly tormented in this fixture over the years and will look to upset the odds this time around, clinching a first Supercup since 2019 in the process. Bayern, meanwhile, have won the competition four times this decade.

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