There will be a trophy lifted in Cardiff on Sunday. Then, such is the peculiar existence of the Community Shield, then everybody will spend the next nine months pretending it never happened.
Arsenal and Manchester City meet at the Principality Stadium with the traditional curtain-raiser to the English campaign at stake. Both will want to win. Neither manager will approach the contest wanting to lose.
Yet should either club finish the season without another trophy, nobody will point towards Sunday's triumph as evidence of success.
The Community Shield simply isn't considered a major honour in England. And that becomes increasingly curious when you look around Europe.
In Spain, the Supercopa is taken seriously.
Real Madrid and Barcelona certainly don't treat meetings in the competition as glorified friendlies and the Spanish authorities have actively attempted to increase its importance.
The competition was expanded in 2020, with the LaLiga champions and runners-up joining the Copa del Rey winners and runners-up in a four-team format.
In doing so, Spain has effectively taken the concept England dismisses and turned it into a showpiece event.
Italy has gone down the same road.
The Supercoppa Italiana was traditionally contested by the Serie A champions and Coppa Italia winners. It has since expanded to four teams, bringing the runners-up from both competitions into the equation.
Again, there is no confusion over whether winning it counts. It is silverware and it counts.
Germany retains something closer to the English model, with its Supercup generally involving the Bundesliga champions and German Cup winners.
Yet even there the competition carries a status the Community Shield struggles to command.
So why are we so sniffy about ours? History provides part of the explanation.
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The fixture began life as the Charity Shield and retains an important charitable purpose today. It was not always the straightforward meeting of England's league champions and FA Cup winners either.
Then there is its position in the calendar.
The Community Shield arrives when football still feels like pre-season. For many other clubs, it still is.
Players are building fitness, managers are managing minutes and new signings are integrated.
It is technically competitive football but carries an asterisk that makes it more like a friendly.
Even its venue this year highlights the identity crisis.
Wembley is unavailable, so Arsenal and City are heading to Cardiff instead.
There is nothing wrong with the Principality Stadium, of course. It successfully hosted English football's biggest occasions while Wembley was being rebuilt and remains one of Britain's finest sporting arenas.
But imagine suggesting the FA Cup final could simply be moved because Wembley wasn't available.? It would be unthinkable.
There is another important difference with Spain and Italy.
Their Super Cups have been separated from the traditional pre-season environment and transformed into standalone tournaments. There is greater ceremony around them and, increasingly, significant commercial value.
Another factor that doesn't help is that there's already so much silverware at stake.
For those fortunate enough, there are dreams of glory in the Premier League, Champions League, League Cup and FA Cup. The Community Shield, therefore, gets shunted down the pecking order.
Of course, it does matter to some sides. It meant the world to Crystal Palace and Leicester following their victories in 2025 and 2022 respectively.
They will certainly argue that it deserves more recognition. Just because a big team didn't win it, doesn't mean it will be disregarded.
Arsenal and City will meet today. It can be an early boost. But its significance to both sides ends there.
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