The FA Cup is the oldest national football competition in the world and remains one of the most iconic tournaments on the sporting calendar.
Dates
The exact dates for the 2026/27 FA Cup campaign are as follows:
First Round | 7th November 2026 weekend |
Second Round | 5th December 2026 weekend |
Third Round | 9th January 2027 weekend |
Fourth Round | 13th February 2027 weekend |
Fifth Round | 6th March 2027 weekend |
Quarter-final | 3rd April 2027 weekend |
Semi-final | 24th 2027 April weekend |
Final | 22nd May 2027 weekend |
Format
Any club from the top 10 levels of the English football league system can enter, including 100s of non-league teams.
They compete through six qualifying rounds before the tournament reaches the first-round proper with the 32 teams that made it that far joining the first of the 48 professional teams from Leagues One and Two. Premier League and Championship clubs then enter at the third-round stage.
The teams are whittled down over rounds four and five before the competition reaches the quarter-final and semi-final stage.
The semis are played at Wembley Stadium too, before the final takes place, usually in late-May, with the winners qualifying for the following season's UEFA Europa League.
There are no longer be any replays from the first round proper with matches decided on the day with a period of extra-time followed by a penalty shootout if necessary.
The FA Cup will also now take place on exclusive weekends with no crossover between the competition and Premier League fixtures.
Prize money
The prize money on offer for the 2026/26 FA Cup is as follows:
- Extra preliminary round winners - £1,125
- Extra preliminary round losers - £375
- Preliminary round winners - £1,444
- Preliminary round losers - £481
- First round qualifying winners - £2,250
- First round qualifying losers - £750
- Second round qualifying winners - £3,375
- Second round qualifying losers - £1,125
- Third round qualifying winners - £5,625
- Third round qualifying losers - £1,875
- Fourth round qualifying winners - £9,375
- Fourth round qualifying losers - £3,125
- First round proper winners - £47,750
- First round proper losers - £15,800
- Second round proper winners - £79,500
- Second round proper losers - £21,200
- Third round proper winners - £121,500
- Third round proper losers - £26,500
- Fourth round proper winners - £127,000
- Fifth round proper winners - £238,500
- Quarter-final winners - £477,000
- Semi-final winners - £1,060,000
- Semi-final losers - £530,000
- Final runners-up - £1,060,000
- Final winners - £2,120,000
History
The FA (Football Association, England's governing body) Cup was first played during the 1871/72 season and the first winners were Wanderers, a team made up of former public schoolboys based in London, who actually won the competition five times in those very early years.
Between 1872 and 1922, various venues hosted the showpiece game, including Kennington Oval, Crystal Palace, Goodison Park and Old Trafford, before the final was first staged at Wembley Stadium in 1923.
It stayed there until 2000, before relocating to Cardiff for six years while Wembley was being rebuilt, and the 'new' Wembley has hosted the final since 2007.
Arsenal have won the FA Cup the most, lifting the trophy a record 14 times, most recently in 2020.
The Gunners have also appeared in the most finals (21). Manchester United are second on the list, winning the Cup 12 times, while Chelsea and Tottenham have been FA Cup winners eight times each, a number that is matched by Liverpool.
In 2023, the first ever Manchester Derby in an FA Cup final saw Pep Guardiola's City defeat Erik ten Hag's United 2-1, contributing to the Citizens matching the Red Devils' 1999 feat of completing a treble of Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League.
The Red Devils exacted their revenge 12 months later, though, beating City 2-1 at Wembley Stadium to quash the Premier League champions' bid to secure back-to-back domestic doubles.
Crystal Palace won their first ever major trophy in 2025, defeating Manchester City 1-0 in the final thanks to a goal from Eberechi Eze.
Previous winners
Year | Winner |
2026 | Manchester City |
2025 | Crystal Palace |
2024 | Manchester United |
2023 | Manchester City |
2022 | Liverpool |
2021 | Leicester City |
2020 | Arsenal |
2019 | Manchester City |
2018 | Chelsea |
2017 | Arsenal |
2016 | Manchester United |
2015 | Arsenal |
2014 | Arsenal |
2013 | Wigan |
2012 | Chelsea |
2011 | Manchester City |
2010 | Chelsea |
2009 | Chelsea |
2008 | Portsmouth |
2007 | Chelsea |
2006 | Liverpool |
2005 | Arsenal |
