Arsenal vs Borussia Dortmund prediction, tips and odds | 09/08/2026

Arsenal host Borussia Dortmund at Emirates Stadium on Sunday in the 2026 Emirates Cup, the reigning Premier League champions' final home fixture before the new season gets under way.

Mikel Arteta's side head into it on the back of a sobering 3-1 defeat to Real Betis in Dublin, while Niko Kovac's Dortmund arrive having split their last four friendlies evenly between wins and losses on a pre-season tour that took in Germany and Japan.

Arsenal's form and Borussia Dortmund's Emirates Cup test

Arsenal arrive as Premier League champions for the first time in 22 years, and Sunday's game is being treated as a genuine gauge of where Arteta's squad stands rather than a ceremonial send-off.

Wins over MK Dons and Girona opened the summer schedule before a chastening evening in Dublin, where Kepa Arrizabalaga's error and two sloppy giveaways in front of goal handed Real Betis a three-nil lead inside the first half.

Arteta was pointed in his assessment afterwards, saying his side had failed to match their attacking intent with the required defensive standards, and reports from inside the camp described the players as fuming at their own mistakes.

That reaction sets up an obvious subplot heading into Dortmund's visit, with Arsenal keen to show the Betis defeat was a blip rather than a pattern before the Community Shield and the Premier League opener against Coventry City arrive in quick succession.

William Saliba and Ben White remain absent from the back line that helped Arsenal win the title, and their continued absence is the clearest explanation for the goals conceded in Dublin.

Emirates Cup pedigree is on Arsenal's side regardless of the wider context, with the hosts having won each of their last four stagings of this pre-season tournament without losing a game.

Borussia Dortmund travel to north London having finished as Bundesliga runners-up last season, and this is being billed as the toughest test of their own pre-season programme.

Kovac's squad has looked disjointed in patches, following up a routine win over Rot-Weiss Oberhausen with a two-one defeat to Fortuna Dusseldorf and a goalless loss to Cerezo Osaka on their Japanese tour.

A one-nil win over FC Tokyo steadied things, and top scorer Serhou Guirassy made his first appearance of the summer as a second-half substitute in that game after Fabio Silva had opened the scoring.

Guirassy scored 22 goals in all competitions last season, comfortably the club's leading marksman, and Dortmund will hope holding him back for a late introduction again on Sunday keeps him fresh for the games that count.

The rebuild has been significant regardless of that continuity up front, with Julian Brandt joining Ajax and Karim Adeyemi moving to Barcelona this summer, taking two of last season's four leading scorers out of the dressing room.

Both sides have won three of their last five matches, but the shape of those results tells different stories.

Arsenal's 11 goals scored in that span is the more eye-catching number, built on emphatic wins over Girona and MK Dons rather than anything drawn from a settled defensive unit.

Dortmund's two clean sheets in the same period, against Werder Bremen and FC Tokyo, suggest a side capable of shutting up shop even while other results have been mixed.

Ladbrokes are among the operators already pricing up Sunday's Emirates Cup fixture, and readers weighing their options can find the sportsbook's full range of football markets and latest sign-up offer in our Ladbrokes review.

Those comparing new UK bookmakers ahead of the season proper, or wanting a broader look at the top betting sites UK punters currently use, can find both rounded up separately from this preview.

Team news for Arsenal vs Borussia Dortmund

Arsenal

Saliba's continued absence with a back injury is the single biggest defensive team news item for Arsenal ahead of Sunday.

Ben White is being targeted for a mid-August return from his own knee problem, which leaves his availability for this specific fixture in the balance rather than ruled out entirely.

The bigger factor shaping Sunday's squad is a fresh wave of World Cup returnees, with Declan Rice, Bukayo Saka, Eberechi Eze, Martin Zubimendi, Noni Madueke, Mikel Merino and David Raya all back in training but held out of this particular game.

That points to a heavily rotated Arsenal side, with Arteta using the Dortmund friendly to give minutes to squad players and academy prospects rather than the group that won the title.

New signing Christos Tzolis has already made an impression in pre-season, scoring on his debut against Girona, and he offers Arteta a fresh option in a front line rebuilt around Viktor Gyokeres for this fixture.

Kepa Arrizabalaga takes over in goal with Raya rested, and Max Dowman gets another chance to catch the eye after his display in the win over Girona.

Borussia Dortmund

Dortmund are without three defenders for this trip, with Nico Schlotterbeck's ankle problem and Emre Can's cruciate ligament injury both extending well beyond this fixture.

Waldemar Anton is likely to captain a reshuffled back line as a result, having already done so through much of pre-season.

18-year-old Konstantinos Karetsas arrived from Genk for a reported 30 million euros plus add-ons and is being lined up as Julian Brandt's long-term successor, though a minor ankle knock in the build-up to this game makes his involvement a doubt.

Maximilian Beier scored 10 goals last season and has featured in a variety of forward roles in pre-season, including as an auxiliary wing-back in the win over FC Tokyo.

Guirassy's fitness is not in question, but Kovac's preference for introducing him from the bench in recent friendlies suggests supporters should not expect him from the first whistle.

Predicted XIs: Arsenal vs Borussia Dortmund

Arsenal predicted XI (4-3-3): Arrizabalaga, Timber, Mosquera, Gabriel, Calafiori, Nwaneri, Lewis-Skelly, Havertz, Dowman, Gyokeres, Tzolis.

Borussia Dortmund predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Kobel, Ryerson, Anton, Bensebaini, Svensson, Nmecha, Sabitzer, Bellingham, Beier, Chukwuemeka, Silva.

Arsenal and Borussia Dortmund's head-to-head record

Arsenal and Borussia Dortmund have never met outside the Champions League group stage, and their last of eight encounters came almost 12 years ago.

Arsene Wenger's side won that November 2014 fixture two-nil at Emirates Stadium, part of a run in which Arsenal won three and drew one of their last four meetings with Dortmund in that competition.

None of that history carries much weight on team sheets that have turned over almost entirely since, but it does add a layer of occasion to a rivalry that has lain dormant for over a decade.

Jobe Bellingham will be the one player with a personal stake in returning to English soil, while Kai Havertz and Piero Hincapie face a Dortmund side stocked with players they know well from their time at Bayer Leverkusen.

Arsenal vs Borussia Dortmund prediction and betting tips