Liverpool FC Charity Shield / Community Shield Record

There is an extent to which many people scoff at the idea of the Community Shield, which was originally known as the Charity Shield, being some sort of noteworthy competition. Certainly in terms of how seriously teams take it nowadays it isn’t on the same level as even the League Cup, let alone the likes of the Premier League or FA Cup. It is those two competitions that you need to win in order to be part of the Community Shield match, however, so in terms of qualification criteria it is a difficult match to be a part of. Little wonder, then, that smaller sides such as Everton might not think it deserves its place in the sun.

The qualification criteria has changed numerous times over the years, to say nothing of who gets to take part in the tournament on occasions when a team has done a top-flight and FA Cup double. What that means is that Liverpool have taken part in it at times when they didn’t win either trophy, as well as had to face opposition that didn’t lift silverware because the Reds won both of them. The trophy itself was known as the Charity Shield until the point that the Football Association was informed that it didn’t give enough money to charity to call it that, so rather than increase its donations simply decided to rename it.

Having evolved out of the Sheriff of London Charity Shield that was first introduced in 1898 as a tournament between professionals and amateurs, it came into existence when the leading amateur sides fell out with the FA. Initially the Football League winners players the Southern League champions, then it changed to Amateur XIs versus Professional XIs in 1913 before the league winners versus FA Cup winners idea was introduced in 1921. The format altered a few more times before the league versus FA Cup winners idea became the standard thing in 1930 and remained in place, bar a few exceptions over the years.

@punditbible

The Impact of the Charity Shield on Premier League Success #mancity #garyneville #football #pundit #footballedit #footballtiktok #tiktok #fyp #fypシ #fypシ゚viral #foryou #foryoupage #foryourpage #manutd #premierleague

♬ original sound – Pundit Bible

In 1950, for example, it saw the England World Cup team go up against an FA team that had toured Canada, whilst in 1961 it was Tottenham Hotspur against a Football Association XI after Spurs became the first side in the England to win a league and FA Cup double. It has been played at the start of the season since 1959, with the 1971 tournament seeing a team that had won neither the FA Cup nor the league winning it for the first time. This is because Arsenal had done the double but couldn’t take part, so Second Division champions Leicester City were invited to take on FA Cup runners-up Liverpool, winning the trophy for the first time.

Several similar such issues occurred at one point or another, but in 1974 the then-Secretary of the Football Association, Ted Croker, came up with the format that it currently uses, with the match being played at Wembley Stadium between the top-flight winners and the FA Cup winners. When a team wins the double, the opposition has sometimes been the side that finished in second place in the league and other times has been the FA Cup runners-up. It means that Liverpool have been able to qualify for the competition via numerous means, though obviously haven’t always met the criteria of playing in the top-flight.

Liverpool in the Charity Shield / Community Shield

The table above shows how Liverpool have performed in the top-flight and FA Cup each season that they might have been able to take part in the Charity Shield / Community Shield. Years in which it was not possible for club sides to qualify or in which the match did not take place are not included.

The performances in the top-flight and FA Cup are for the previous season, with the year being the one in which the match was taking place. We have assumed that it was the end of the season at all times, even though it wasn’t in some season. For the Final Score, Liverpool’s will always be first.

*In some years when the match was drawn, the trophy was shared between the two teams that made it to the final.

**In 1971, Arsenal had pre-season tour commitments that meant that they couldn’t take part. Leicester City did so as Second Division champions, with Liverpool qualifying as FA Cup runners-up the previous season.

^The 1974 Charity Shield went to penalties, which Liverpool won 6-5.

^^The 2019 Community Shield went to penalties, which Manchester City won 5-4.

^^^The 2020 Community Shield went to penalties, which Arsenal won 5-4.

Taking a Closer Look at Liverpool’s Community Shield / Charity Shield Wins

In some ways, the Community Shield, as it is known nowadays, is an easy trophy to forget. Ultimately, the result doesn’t mean anything, as demonstrated by Liverpool’s 3-1 win over Manchester City in 2022, only for the Cityzens to win the Premier League for the fourth time whilst the Reds finished fifth in the season that followed. Yet it can also be a chance to lay down a marker and to fire a shot across the bow of a team that you see as a potential challenger. Don’t think that Evertonians don’t know that they defeated Liverpool in the Charity Shield in 1984, for example, or that we have only beaten them once in the competition.

For supporters, meanwhile, it is the first chance to have a look at the team ahead of the new season, which is always a nice thing to look forward to. Here, then, is a closer look at when Liverpool have either won or shared the trophy:

1964 (Liverpool 2 West Ham United 2)

Interestingly, the first time that Liverpool won the League Cup was in a match with West Ham United, the first of which ended in a draw before the Reds won the replay. That wouldn’t be for nearly 20 years when they went up against them in the Charity Shield in 1964, however. Liverpool were taking part in the tournament on account of the fact that they had won the previous season’s First Division title, finishing four points ahead of Manchester United. That was the first title of the Bill Shankly era and the new-look Liverpool, so there is an argument that the Charity Shield appearance was the most important of all.

The game itself was quite an exciting one, with the Reds taking the lead after 29 minutes thanks to Gordon Wallace. The Hammers struck back just before half-time through John Byrne, only for Liverpool’s own ‘Byrne’, Gerry, to put the Reds back in front four minutes after the start of the second-half. There can’t be many examples of two players with the same surname that aren’t related scoring in the same major game. The equaliser for West Ham came just six minutes before the 90 were up, from none other than England hero Geoff Hurst. As penalties weren’t a thing at the time, the clubs shared the trophy.

1965 (Liverpool 2 Manchester United 2)

Another first for Liverpool occurred at the end of the 1964-1965 season when the Reds lifted their first FA Cup. That had been a dream of Shankly’s, making the fact that the club got to take part in the Charity Shield at the start of the following campaign all the more special. The previous year’s final had taken place at Anfield with Liverpool having been the league winners, so the 1965 version was played out at Old Trafford. That is because the Red Devils were in the competition on account of the fact that they won the First Division, finishing on the same number of points as Leeds United but having a better goal average.

The actual match was not dissimilar to the previous season’s, insomuch as the two clubs each scored two goals per half and the equaliser was netted not far from the final whilst. United took the lead through George Best just before the half hour mark, then Liverpool equalised courtesy of William Stevenson ten minutes later. The Red Devils restored their advantage in the 81st minute, only for Ron Yeats to ensure that the honours were even five minutes later. Once again there were no penalties in the competition at that stage, so the two clubs shared the trophy, with each able to claim it as a win.

1966 (Liverpool 1 Everton 0)

There is something quite fitting about the fact that Liverpool’s first outright win of the Charity Shield came about thanks to a victory over Everton. The Reds made it into the competition on account of the fact that they had won the league the previous season, finishing six points ahead of Leeds United. It was a sign that the club was a serious proposition under Bill Shankly, who had picked up two First Division titles in three years and the club’s first FA Cup in the intervening one. Everton, meanwhile, had run out 3-2 winners over Sheffield Wednesday in the FA Cup final of 1966, making it to the final without conceding a goal.

1966..Goodison Park, Jules Rimet and FA Trophies on display before the Charity Shield Match- #Everton v #Liverpool pic.twitter.com/rskxKlGKJc

— Kathleen (@oldpicposter) September 11, 2024

Even though Liverpool were the defending First Division champions, the match took place at Goodison Park. To some degree, that made the win all the sweeter for the players and the supporters, even if this was in the age of the game between the sides being the ‘Friendly Derby’. Prior to kick-off, Roger Hunt and Ray Wilson paraded the World Cup trophy, which England had won in the summer, in front of the watching fans. It was Hunt who scored the only goal of the game, which came in the ninth minute of the first-half, ensuring that the Reds could put the trophy in their cabinet without having to send it to Everton after six months.

1974 (Liverpool 1 Leeds United 1; 6-5 on Penalties)

Having done battle with Leeds United in the league in the past, it was only right that the two teams go up against one another in the Charity Shield. It was the first of Liverpool’s games to be played at Wembley Stadium and was also the first time that Bob Paisley had managed in the tournament. Another first came in the fact that Paisley and Brian Clough hadn’t gone up against one another as managers of Liverpool and Leeds United respectively, with Clough starting his ill-fated spell there. The Reds asked recently retired Bill Shankly to lead them out onto the field and were there on account of winning 3-0 over Newcastle United in the FA Cup.

Emlyn Hughes lifts the Charity Shield in 1974 with the travelling reds in fine voice at Anfield South..Shanks iconic salute in this is a joy to watch. pic.twitter.com/0HMNlXrLvs

— Davolaa (@Davolaar) July 25, 2023

Leeds, meanwhile, had won the First Division by finishing five points ahead of Liverpool. In terms of the match, it finished 1-1 in normal time thanks to a goal after 19 minutes from Philip Boersma for Liverpool and a 70th minute equaliser by Trevor Cherry for Leeds. It is mostly remembered for the referee, Bob Matthewson, sending off Kevin Keegan and Billy Bremner for fighting on the hour mark. The 1974 match was the first to involve a penalty shootout if it ended as a draw, with both teams scoring their first five before Ian Callaghan scored for the Reds and David Harvey missed for Leeds, giving Liverpool the win.

1976 (Liverpool 1 Southampton 0)

Two years later and the Reds were back at Wembley, this time to take on Southampton in the Charity Shield. They made it into the game thanks to their success in the First Division during the 1975-1976 season, finishing one point clear of Queens Park Rangers. It was the start of a period of dominance for Liverpool, albeit having also won the title three years earlier. Southampton were there thanks to a 1-0 win over Manchester United in the FA Cup, surprising everyone on account of the fact that the Reds Devils had finished third in the First Division and the Saints had ended up sixth in the Second Division.

Loved this away kit from the Charity Shield 1976. Was such a rarity to wear that combination #LFC

— Paul (@liverblokelfc.bsky.social) 2024-11-25T13:38:52.949Z

The game wasn’t exactly a thriller, but it was a chance for Bob Paisley to get a look at his team in a competitive game. The team was a strong one, with the likes of Ray Clemence, Phil Thompson, Emlyn Hughes and Kevin Keegan all starting for Liverpool. It was Keegan who headed the ball down to John Toshack on the edge of the area in the 50th minute that the Welsh striker smashed past Ian Turner in the Southampton goal. Although the Reds had the likes of David Fairclough, Terry McDermott and Peter Cormack on the bench, they chose to make no substitutions as they won the trophy for the fifth time.

1977 (Liverpool 0 Manchester United 0)

It was another trip to London and ‘Anfield South’ for Liverpool in 1977, thanks to the fact that they had once again won the First Division title. It was actually the other team from Manchester that had taken them close, with Manchester City getting 56 points compared to the 57 that the Reds notched up. They might well have done the double, if not for the fact that Manchester United defeated them 2-1 in the FA Cup final to book their place in the Charity Shield alongside their Merseyside rivals. That game finished with three goals, whilst the Charity Shield didn’t have any and therefore ended up as a 0-0 draw.

In spite of the fact that the Football Association had introduced a penalty shootout in the Charity Shield when it finished level three years earlier, they didn’t employ the same tactic in 1977. Instead, it was once more a trophy that was shared between then bitter enemies, with Liverpool having the trophy for six months and the Red Devils taking it for the other six. It was the second successive Charity Shield in which the Liverpool manager made no substitutions, meaning that the likes of Tommy Smith, Alan Hansen and Steve Heighway failed to make it onto the pitch as the dour draw was played out in front of them all.

1979 (Liverpool 3 Arsenal 1)

There was something remarkable about 1978, insomuch as Liverpool only came second in the league and were knocked out of the FA Cup in the third round. It was a case of ‘normal service resumed’ the following season, however, thanks to the fact that the Reds won the First Division by eight points from Nottingham Forest. Arsenal, meanwhile, defeated the side that Liverpool had had to face in the 1977 Charity Shield in the FA Cup, winning 3-2 over Manchester United to put themselves into their first Charity Shield against the Reds. Although it wouldn’t be their last, it was also the first time that they lost in the tournament to Liverpool.

Alan Hansen fine interception, strides forward & lays on a perfect assist to Kenny Dalglish who finishes superbly past Pat Jennings in a 3-1 victory over Arsenal in the Charity Shield at Wembley 1979. #LFC
Happy Birthday Jocky lad.🙏 pic.twitter.com/CEoeKOqZaW

— Davolaa (@Davolaar) June 13, 2024

It is fair to say that the Reds were well-fancied, on account of the fact that they had won the league with a then-record points total and had conceded the fewest goals in a 42-game season. Ahead of the game Bob Paisley said to reporters, “Basically it is a conditioning game, part of the process of getting the players fit”. They took the lead in the 38th minute through Terry McDermott, heading into the break with a goal advantage. Kenny Dalglish doubled said advanced in the 63rd minute before McDermott scored his second two minutes later. Arsenal got themselves a consolation goal two minutes from the end of the match.

1980 (Liverpool 1 West Ham United 0)

Having shared the Charity Shield with West Ham United in 1964, Liverpool were determined to win it this time around. When they had faced Arsenal in the competition a year earlier, supporters were heard chanting, “What’s it like to be outclassed?” and “Why are we so great?”. They might well have asked the same thing of the Hammers in 1980, albeit the game was a much closer affair. Liverpool were there thanks to the fact that they had won the First Division with 60 points, pipping Manchester United to the title by two points. West Ham, on the other other hand, had beaten London rivals Arsenal in the FA Cup final.

The Charity Shield itself was far from the most exciting game that Wembley Stadium had ever seen. In the 17th minute, Alan Kennedy took a shot that West Ham’s Phil Parkes wasn’t able to hold onto. Terry McDermott, who was no stranger to scoring in the game, pounced on the ball and fired home to give the Reds a 1-0 lead that they maintained for the rest of the game. It was yet another time when Bob Paisley made no substitutions, leaving Sammy Lee, David Fairclough and Avi Cohen on the bench, alongside others. It kick-started a decade in which Liverpool seemed to be at Wembley almost as much as Anfield.

1982 (Liverpool 1 Tottenham Hotspur 0)

Having endured a fallow season the year before thanks to a fifth place finish in the First Division and a fourth round exit from the FA Cup, Liverpool were back in Wembley in 1982 for another crack at the Charity Shield. It was also the third time in a row that the Reds had had to take on opposition from London, having already despatched Arsenal and West Ham United in 1979 and 1980 respectively. This time it was Tottenham Hotspur that Liverpool had to deal with, thanks to the fact that the Reds had won the First Division by finishing four points clear of Ipswich Town in the English top-flight.

On this day in 1982 it all got a little heated during the Charity Shield between Liverpool and Spurs, with Garth Crooks at the centre of things during this incident that also involved Graeme Souness.#LFC #THFC #OnThisDay pic.twitter.com/8rvwJuUzXA

— 1980s TV Football Heaven (@1980sHeaven) August 21, 2020

Spurs, on the other hand, had had to go to Wembley Stadium twice in the space of a week, having drawn the original FA Cup final 1-1 with Queens Park Rangers after extra-time. They won the replay 1-0, setting them up for this match with the reigning English champions. It was the first under Paisley in which the Liverpool manager chose to make a substitution, sending on David Hodgson as a replacement for Kenny Dalglish after 69 minutes. The only goal of the game came from Ian Rush, with the Liverpool record goalscorer finding the back of the net 32 minutes in before a sold defensive display saw the match finish 1-0.

1986 (Liverpool 1 Everton 1)

Liverpool had been on the losing end of a 1-0 win against Everton in the Charity Shield two years earlier, so some had revenge in mind when the two clubs met in the same competition in 1986. Evertonians, meanwhile, were far from pleased with their Merseyside rivals on account of the fact that the Heysel Stadium Disaster had resulted in English sides being banned from European competition, meaning that Everton’s 1985 First Division win was not rewarded with a European Cup appearance. It is fair to say that Merseyside was the dominant area of the country in the 1980s, even as Margaret Thatcher ravaged it politically.

This can be seen in the fact that Liverpool won a First Division and FA Cup double at the end of the 1985-1986 season, finishing two points clear of Everton in the league with 88 points. The Reds also won 3-1 against their Merseyside rivals in the FA Cup final, winning the double for the first time. Everton qualified for the Charity Shield as FA Cup runners-up, taking the lead through Adrian Heath in the 80th minute before the scourge of the Blues, Rush, equalised eight minutes later. With no penalty shootout at the time, the clubs shared the Charity Shield for the year, having it for six months each.

1988 (Liverpool 2 Wimbledon 1)

In the previous season’s FA Cup, Liverpool were shock losers in the match dubbed the ‘Crazy Gang versus the Culture Club’. The Dons had won 1-0 thanks to a goal from Lawry Sanchez in the 37th minute, albeit with Liverpool dominating the match but simply not finding the back of the net. They had, however, won the First Division, racking up 90 points thanks to just two defeats all season. They ended up nine points cleat of Manchester United, who were themselves eight points in front of Nottingham Forest. Wimbledon had ended the campaign in seventh with 57 points, hence the shock of their FA Cup victory.

John Aldridge here with a couple of well taken goals to defeat Wimbledon in the Charity Shield 1988 & reflects on the Reds return of Ian Rush. pic.twitter.com/pVKJgegLEC

— Davolaa (@Davolaar) September 11, 2023

It was actually Wimbledon who took the lead too, with John Fashanu getting on the end of a Dennis Wise cross after 17 minutes. The Reds were not having any of that nonsense, however, and John Aldridge, who has missed a penalty in that ill-fated FA Cup final, got the equaliser just six minutes later. It was Aldridge who got the winner in the 69th minute, getting on the end of a cross from the same player who had set him up for Liverpool’s first goal, John Barnes. He controlled the ball with his left leg before smashing it home with his right. The Reds then kept Wimbledon at bay for the remainder of the game to secure another win.

1989 (Liverpool 1 Arsenal 0)

The 1988-1989 season had proven to be an incredibly emotion one for Liverpool. On the 15th of April, 97 Liverpool supporters had lost their lives in the Hillsborough Stadium Disaster on account of police negligence; a disaster for which nobody has ever been found guilty in a court of law. Then, at the end of the season, the First Division title would’ve been secured if they had avoided a two-goal loss to Arsenal, only for the Gunners to win 2-0 at Anfield thanks to a goal from Michael Thomas in the final minute. Liverpool made it to the FA Cup final and won 3-2 over Everton after extra-time to earn their place in the Charity Shield.

@liverpoolarchives

Arsenal vs Liverpool 12/08/89 FA Charity Shield #lfc #liverpool #ynwa #afc #arsenal #liverpoolfc #football #footballtiktok #fyp #foryou #foryoupage

♬ original sound – Liverpool Archives

The game was therefore a repeat of the previous season’s final game, offering Liverpool a chance to gain some modicum of revenge over the London club. Peter Beardsley scored the only goal of the game in the 32nd minute, getting onto the end of a ball behind the Arsenal defence from Barry Venison. Supporters of the Gunners were frustrated by George Graham’s cautious approach, which failed to cause Liverpool any real problems and allowed the Reds to dominate most of the game. Glenn Hysén ended up with the Man of the Match award, whilst Kenny Dalglish being pleased with his players’ performance in the game.

1990 (Liverpool 1 Manchester United 1)

In something of a changing of the guard, the 1990 Charity Shield saw Liverpool, who had dominated English football in the 1970s and 1980s, going up against the side who would go on to be the dominant force in the 1990s and 2000s. It was Aston Villa that were Liverpool’s closest challengers in the First Division, ending up nine points shy of Kenny Dalglish’s side, allowing them to play in the competition once again. United, meanwhile, finished 13th in the league, 31 points behind the Reds. They made it to the FA Cup final, however, and drew 3-3 after extra-time with Crystal Palace, resulting in a replay between the two sides.

The replay finished 1-0 to the Red Devils, seeing them play the Charity Shield against Liverpool for the fourth time. Two of the previous three had ended in a draw and a shared trophy, whilst the third was a 2-0 win for Manchester United in 1983. Liverpool might well have wanted some revenge, therefore, but it was the Red Devils who took the lead in the 44th minute thanks to Clayton Blackmore. John Barnes levelled for Liverpool in the 51st minute from the penalty spot, but when no winner could be found the trophy was shared for the third time between the two fierce rivals, who have dominated English football.

2001 (Liverpool 2 Manchester United 1)

With Liverpool’s abject failure in the Premier League and the FA Cup in the intervening years meaning that they didn’t appear in the Charity Shield, barring a 4-3 loss to Leeds United in 1992, it took until 2001 for them to reappear in the competition. It was once again Manchester United that they faced, on account of the fact that the Red Devils had won the Premier League title finishing ten points clear of Arsenal and 11 ahead of Liverpool. The Reds ended the 2000-2001 season as treble winners, however, thanks to a win over Birmingham City in the League Cup, Alaves in the UEFA Cup and a 2-1 victory over Arsenal in the FA Cup.

@thedailyecho

#OnThisDay 2001 Ruud van Nistelrooy made his Manchester United debut in a 2-1 Charity Shield defeat to Liverpool. He was on the scoresheet finishing off a brilliant team move #MUFC #liverpool #manutd #ruudvannistelrooy #atomickitten

♬ Eternal Flame – Single Version – Atomic Kitten

With more than 70,000 people inside the Millennium Stadium in Wales, Roy Keane fouled Danny Murphy in the box to hand the Reds a penalty after just two minutes. Gary McAllister scored it to give Liverpool the lead, then 14 minutes later Michael Owen doubled it. A goal from Ruud van Nistelrooy in the 51st minute proved to be nothing more than a consolation goal for Manchester United, whose manager, Alex Ferguson, unsurprisingly moaned about the referee after the full-time whistle. He claimed that Andy D’Urso had ignored two penalty appeals for the Reds Devils, doubtless trying to get into his head before the season.

2006 (Liverpool 2 Chelsea 1)

One of the defining rivalries of the 2000s was between Liverpool and Chelsea, with the two clubs regularly meeting in the Champions League. In fact, the success of the Reds over the London club in the 2005 semi-finals of the European competition was part of the story that led to the ‘Miracle of Istanbul’. Although Rafa Benítez ending up leaving Anfield with just two major trophies to his name, the fact that they two finals they were involved in were so incredibly exciting is something for the Spaniard to be proud of; albeit being extremely against his personality type for such thrilling matches to what he would’ve wanted to see.

The 2006 FA Cup final ended 3-3 after extra-time, with Liverpool winning on penalties to set up a Community Shield battle with José Mourinho’s Chelsea. The match was not the opening one of the campaign for the Reds, owing to the fact that they had been entered into the third qualifying round of the Champions League. John Arne Riise gave Liverpool the lead after nine minutes, only for Andriy Shevchenko to score an equaliser just before half-time. There were ten minutes left of normal time when Peter Crouch headed home Craig Bellamy’s cross to hand Liverpool the Community Shield for the tenth time outright.

2022 (Liverpool 3 Manchester City 1)

For the first time in ten years, the Community Shield was hosted away from Wembley Stadium, owing to the fact that the UEFA Women’s European Championship final was being hosted there. Instead, it was Leicester City’s King Power Stadium that played host to the curtain-raiser for the season, which was seen as the first chance for the top two from the Premier League the previous season to exchange blows ahead of the forthcoming campaign. The Reds had beaten Chelsea 6-5 on penalties after a 0-0 draw after extra-time in the previous season’s FA Cup, with Liverpool also having won the League Cup and lost in the Champions League final.

@kop18922

Charity shield ✅ Nunez goal, quality atmosphere and my young lad got a pic with bobby after the game what a day ✈️🚌🔴 #lfc #lfcfamily #charityshield #fyp #viral

♬ One Kiss – Calvin Harris & Dua Lipa

Having missed out on the title to Manchester City, who had 130 charges of financial misconduct against them, by 92 points to 93, the Reds had come closer than any other side to winning a quadruple. Trent Alexander-Arnold gave Liverpool the lead in the 21st minute, with Julián Alvarez equalising for the Cityzens in the 70th minute. Mo Salah dispatched a penalty 13 minutes later to restore the lead, then new signing Darwin Núñez netting in the fourth minute of added time to secure the trophy for the Reds. It proved to be something of a false dawn, however, with Liverpool ending the season that followed in fifth place.