WSL 2026/27: Arsenal v Manchester United at Emirates Stadium

Oh look at that, the 2026/27 football season is underway, and I’m back with yet another matchday blog post.
I might be a little overexcited that the Women’s Super League is back. Women’s football has pitched itself in my life once again, and I’m not complaining.
This season, I’m as hooked as ever – I’m playing Fantasy Football for the first time (for the WSL obviously), and have attended my first fixture of the season.

This was the second home fixture of the season for Arsenal. I’ve seen the Arsenal v Manchester United match before in the 2024/25 season, and it’s always a good one to attend. There’s a little rivalry between teams, creating an even better atmosphere.

Booking tickets

Booking accessible tickets with Arsenal’s disability team is always a simple, quick process. This time it took five minutes from start to finish!
The disability team are always friendly and happy to help.
When calling to book tickets, the person asked about my seating preferences, found suitable tickets, took payment and also reserved my audio descriptive commentary headset.
There’s not much to say other than it was as brilliant as ever.

The match

We made our way down to London, arriving to a drizzly capital.
Our onwards journey to the Emirates was smooth, hopping on the tube straight away, along with a collection of Arsenal fans.

We made our way inside the stadium, going through the bag searches and scanning our tickets, where we were helpfully assisted through the accessible gates. We were also handed a matchday programme which was included in the ticket option I’d chosen. I like to keep them as a memory from the match. The best part for me as a blind fan is there’s also an audio version of the programme available. I’ll be listening to that over the coming days.

Once we’d found our block, we let a steward know that I’d reserved an audio description commentary headset, and they duly went to get this for me, bringing it to my seat a few minutes later.
There was around half an hour to wait until kick-off, where a local DJ provided the entertainment.

It was soon time for the pre-match build-up, with the teams making their way out of the tunnel and on to the pitch. This is where the audio describers would usually help to set the scene, and that was when I noticed that my headset wasn’t working. We made a steward aware, who went to tell their supervisor.
North London Forever, a song that’s loved by Arsenal fans, rang round the stadium. Fans held their scarves aloft and joined in, setting the tone for the match.

The whistle blew, and we were underway.
I didn’t have any audio descriptive commentary for the first 10 minutes of the game, so my dad filled in whilst we waited for the issue to be fixed.
A member of the disability team came to keep us updated on the problem, and make sure it was sorted once everything was back up and running. Her support was excellent.
It started with a healthy amount of possession for United, before Arsenal soon started to press.
My audio descriptive commentary started working just in time for when Arsenal’s Lisa Baum stole possession from Jess Park, bursting into the penalty area. She fired her shot straight at the Manchester United goalkeeper, Phallon Tullis-Joyce.
It felt like Arsenal were piling the pressure on United, proved when the audio describer told me that ona Batlle put a “teasing ball” into the box, exposing United’s defence, but it didn’t fall to another Arsenal player.
At the other end of the pitch, Arsenal were made to do some defensive work not long later. The Arsenal keeper Misa Rodriguez was sprung into action to deny Elizabeth Terland twice, with the relief from the fans and audio description palpable around me.
One of the most exciting parts of the first half was the battle between Arsenal’s Olivia Smith, and United’s Anna Sandberg. That continued throughout the match, with the audio describers regularly referencing the battle between the two.

Chances continued for Arsenal, with Mariona Caldentey and Leah Williamson both finding themselves with good opportunities in front of goal which they just couldn’t convert. The frustration was evident from the audio description, with them exclaiming their thoughts.
It was back to the battle between Smith and Sandberg. In the 24th minute, Olivia Smith beat Anna Sandberg and got a cross in, which was cleared only as far as new signing and Lioness Georgia Stanway. It didn’t result in the finish we hoped for, as she dragged the ball wide of the bottom left.

It was almost 1-0 on the brink of half-time as Baum’s cross from the left was headed towards goal by Stina Blackstenius, but Tullis-Joyce tipped it over the bar. The audio describer emphasizing that if it hadn’t been tipped over the bar, it would have been 1-0 to the Arsenal.
With that, the half-time whistle blew and it was time for the audio describers, and us to take a quick break.

We were underway in the second half, with the audio describers confirming there had been no changes during the second half.
There was some lovely link-up play between Ona Batlle and Russo early in the second half and she put the ball across the face of goal, but Maya Le Tissier hooked it out for a corner. The audio describers praised the United skipper for her efforts.
Stanway then curled a cross to the far post and Tullis-Joyce retrieved possession.
There was some more action at the other end of the pitch, when Park smashed the ball over the bar from the edge of the area.
That prompted Arsenal to make some attacking changes, so was explained to me.
Holmberg and Kim Little came on for Smith and Super Mario. There was some confusion as to which position Holmberg would play, but I was told she slotted in. Those substitutions were relayed to me even before they were announced in the stadium, which helped me know exactly what was going on.

It didn’t take long for the substitutes to make an impact. Little’s cross was headed agonisingly wide by Russo, only for the groans which came from the audio describers and all of us.
It was United who took the lead moments later as Arsenal gave the ball away in a dangerous area and Zigiotti calmly placed it in the back of the net. I was informed that she’d slotted the ball between our goalkeepers’ legs.

Just as the audio describers were discussing some attacking changes, , Arsenal responded with exactly that. Summer signing Selina Cerci came on alongside Caitlin Foord to replace Baum and Blackstenius.
Arsenal almost found an equaliser, when Holmberg’s cross was met by Foord’s. Although her first-time effort was saved by the United goalkeeper.
It was time for another Arsenal substitution, so I was informed, as Chloe Kelly came on for Battle. The cheers and the audio description were in sync when she took to the field.
By this point, I was pretty much on the edge of my seat. I kept asking “Will Arsenal find an equaliser?” and so were the audio describers, and every other fan in the stadium I reckon.

The attacking substitutes continued to make a difference, as Holmberg’s cross was headed straight at the United goalkeeper by debutant Cerci.
There were further chances as the 90-minute mark was fast approaching, when a late Steph Catley corner was headed wide by Williamson, and Kelly tried her luck from distance, but the goalkeeper kept United’s lead.

Speaking of corners, the audio describers were tallying up the repeated Arsenal corners. We were up to 12 by the end. Shoutout to them for keeping that tally.
My audio description receiver decided to have another blip right at the closing stages, but it was thankfully only out for a few minutes. It was up and running into added time.
As well as late technical drama, there was also late drama on the pitch. Five minutes into added time, Williamson’s cross to the far post was sealed into the roof of the net by Holmberg. The Gunners finally had that equaliser we’d been waiting for!
The stadium erupted.
Moments after the celebration, the full-time whistle blew. Somehow, Arsenal had rescued a point.

The audio descriptive commentary

Despite the technical glitches, the audio descriptive commentary provided proved why it is at the top of the game. Every shot, set piece, and save was described to me in fantastic detail. Something I love the most is how the exact position is described. Whether a shot was taken from 30 or 6 yards out, I’m told of the exact position. I was even told when the referee was putting down the vanishing spray (what the audio describers comically called shaving foam) for free kicks.
They also let me know about the frustration on players’ faces at times, particularly towards the end when Arsenal was pushing for an equaliser, the colours of the kits and how United’s away kit resembled that of rivals Chelsea, and of course the shirt tugs that happened from time to time. They helped to set the scene through sharing how the pitch looked under the floodlights, and the typical British rain. Anything that was happening on the pitch, was spoken back audibly.

During The technical glitches, I was reminded how much of a difference audio descriptive commentary makes.
That’s why I’m incredibly grateful for the service. It opens up the game to me and other fans more than I have the words to express.
Speaking of that, I’m pleased to say that I’ve been in contact with Arsenal’s disability team since, and they’ve sent over a very positive response. They’ve shown their commitment to accessibility all round. That’s all I can ask for.

It might have been a frustrating game at times. Despite that, Arsenal continue their unbeaten record, and Steph Catley made her 100 Women’s Super League appearance. What a game to attend with those accolades.
It was also a match that was filled with excitement and intensity. I’d go as far as saying that it was a pretty good game for the neutral.
It was great to be back at the Emirates again. I hope to be booking tickets for another match soon.

Holly x