There was a high-profile police presence in Cardiff

Hundreds of officers were on the streets of Cardiff before and after the match between Chelsea and Arsenal.

Police said they had not received intelligence warning of a terrorist threat, but said the operation was to reassure fans of the two London clubs.

Chelsea won Sunday's traditional curtain-raiser to the English football season 2-1 in front of a 58,000 crowd.

Fans of Premiership champions Chelsea and FA Cup winners Arsenal faced a series of searches by teams of stewards as they entered the Millennium Stadium.

Fans were searched on their way in to the Millennium Stadium

Around 800 stewards were on duty alongside hundreds of police officers with teams of armed police on standby.

Chief Superintendent Bob Evans, of South Wales Police, said the operation was in part a response to the London bombings of 7 July and 21 July.

He added: "Thankfully the people who came into Cardiff were very understanding of the current climate in which we are policing.

"We had no issues over people objecting to being searched, thankfully nothing suspicious was found and everybody had a great day."

Chelsea beat Arsenal 2-1 to lift the Community Shield

The stadium was completely cleared on the night before the match for it to be security checked by specialist teams.

Stadium chief executive Paul Sergeant said: "We wanted a sterile venue so we knew exactly what we came into this morning.

"Everything's been checked and re-checked. That was pretty essential."

The police operation continued until supporters of the two teams had left Cardiff on Sunday evening.