FA CUP FINAL 2026 tickets

The 2026 FA Cup final is a battle between two cupfighters. The road to the FA Cup final is a long and tough one, which makes it an amazing achievement to reach the final. Crustal Palace is the first team to qualify for this final. Manchester City joined them on Sunday after beating Nottingham Forest with 2-0.

Important FA Cup final stats

Most Important FA Cup Final Statistics & Records

Tournament overview

• First Tournament: 1871-72 season (oldest football competition in the world)
• Current Holders: Crystal Palace (2025 - their first win)
• Total Different Winners: 45 clubs have won the FA Cup
• Non-English Winner: Cardiff City (1927 - only non-English winner)

Most successful clubs

• Most Wins: Arsenal (14 victories, last in 2020)
• Second Most Wins: Manchester United (13 victories, last in 2024)
• Third Most Wins: Chelsea, Liverpool, Tottenham (8 victories each)
• Most Final Appearances: Arsenal & Manchester United (21 each)
• Most Final Defeats: Manchester United (9 defeats)

Consecutive victories

• Three Consecutive Wins: Wanderers (1876-1878) & Blackburn Rovers (1884-1886)
• Last Successful Defence: Arsenal (2014-2015)
• First Winners: Wanderers (1872) - won 5 of first 7 tournaments

Individual player records

• Most Wins by Player: Ashley Cole (7 wins - 3 with Arsenal, 4 with Chelsea)
• Most Final Appearances: Ashley Cole (8 finals)
• Most Final Appearances (Historical): Arthur Kinnaird (9 finals)
• Most FA Cup Goals Overall: Harry Cursham - Notts County (49 goals, 1877-1891)
• Most Final Goals: Ian Rush (5 goals in finals)
• Youngest Final Goal Scorer: Norman Whiteside (18 years, 1983 vs Brighton)
• Oldest Final Player: Billy Hampson (41 years, 257 days - 1924)

Managerial records

• Most Wins by Manager: Arsène Wenger (7 victories with Arsenal, 1998-2017)
• Second Most Wins: George Ramsay (6 wins with Aston Villa)
• Other Notable Managers: Sir Alex Ferguson & John Nicholson (3+ wins each)

Final score records

• Biggest Final Victory: 6-0 (occurred twice - Bury vs Derby 1903, Manchester City vs Watford 2019)
• Hat-tricks in Finals: 3 total
  • William Townley (Blackburn vs Sheffield Wednesday, 1890)
  • Jimmy Logan (Notts County vs Bolton, 1894)
  • Stan Mortensen (Blackpool vs Bolton, 1953 - "The Matthews Final")
• Fastest Final Goal: Louis Saha (25 seconds, 2009)
• First Penalty in Final: Albert Shepherd (1910)

Attendance & venue records

• Highest Attendance: 1923 Final (Bolton vs West Ham) - estimated 150,000-300,000 (official: 126,047)
• Main Venues: Wembley Stadium (1923-2000, 2007-present)
• Temporary Venue: Millennium Stadium, Cardiff (2001-2006 during Wembley rebuild)
• Early Venues: Kennington Oval, Crystal Palace, Stamford Bridge

Disciplinary records

• First Red Card in Final: Kevin Moran (Manchester United, 1985)
• Total Red Cards in Finals: 6 players sent off (1985-2020)
• Penalty Shootouts in Finals: 3 occasions (2005, 2006, 2022)

Historic milestones

• First Television Broadcast: 1938
• First BBC Radio Broadcast: 1927
• First Wembley Final: 1923 (Bolton vs West Ham)
• Last Replay: 1993 (Arsenal vs Sheffield Wednesday)
• First Non-League Winner: Blackburn Olympic (1883)

Scoring records (All rounds)

• Biggest Win Ever: Preston North End 26-0 Hyde (1887)
• Most Goals in One Season: Jimmy Ross - 19 goals (Preston, 1887-88)
• Post-War Record: Tottenham 13-2 Crewe (1960)
• Modern Record: Shrewsbury 11-2 Marine (1995)

Special achievements

• Double Winners: 7 clubs have won League & FA Cup in same season
• Domestic Treble: Manchester City (2019 - first English club)
• Longest Unbeaten Run: Chelsea (29 matches, ended 2013)
• Biggest Giant Killing Gap: 161 divisions (Marine vs Tottenham, 2021)

Road the 2025-2026 FA Cup final

• Extra Preliminary Round: Saturday 2 August 2025
• Preliminary Round: Saturday 16 August 2025
• First Round Qualifying: Saturday 30 August 2025
• Second Round Qualifying: Saturday 13 September 2025
• Third Round Qualifying: Saturday 27 September 2025
• Fourth Round Qualifying: Saturday 11 October 2025
• First Round Proper: Saturday 1 November 2025
• Second Round Proper: Saturday 6 December 2025
• Third Round Proper: Saturday 10 January 2026
• Fourth Round Proper: Saturday 14 February 2026
• Fifth Round Proper: Saturday 7 March 2026
• Quarter Final: Saturday 4 April 2026
• Semi-Final: Saturday 25 April 2026
• The Final: Saturday 16 May 2026