Interesting and Bizarre Facts about the FA Cup

For football fans across the United Kingdom, the FA Cup is an incredibly exciting time. Starting in August of each year, and ending in May the following one, we watch the teams play tirelessly against each other until one is eventually crowned the winner. Interestingly, the FA Cup is the oldest football tournament in the world. It started in 1871 and was incredibly popular from the start. Since then, support for the competition has only increased with the FA Cup being generally celebrated amongst the British people. This year marks the 135^th year that the FA Cup has run, and on the 21^st of May the final will take place at Wembley Arena, where we will see Manchester United take on Crystal Palace. To get you ready and in the mood for the final next month, here are 12 interesting and bizarre facts about the competition:

1. Spurs is the only non-league team to have won the FA Cup. They won it in 1901, and then 60 years later they became the first team to win the league and cup double.
2. The highest score line in the final is 6-0, when Derby County was beaten by Bury in 1903.
3. The longest FA Cup tie lasted five games. This incredibly long game was finally ended when Bury beat Stoke in the 4^th replay in 1954. Talk about exhausting!
4. Leicester City has reached the final four times. Of those four times, none of them resulted in victory. Now they look like winning their first Premier League title.
5. The fastest goal scored in the FA Cup final was 42 seconds. This amazing goal was scored by Roberto Di Matteo, who played for Chelsea, and later managed them to a Champions League title.
6. The first player to be sent off in the FA Cup final was Kevin Moran of Manchester United in 1985 in the match against Everton.
7. Arsenal has lost 6-0 three times in the FA Cup. The first was against Sunderland in 1883, the second against Derby in 1889, and the third against West Ham in 1946.
8. West Brom was the first team to win the FA Cup with a completely English-born team in 1888.
9. Blackburn had an amazing run of 24 consecutive games in which they were undefeated during the FA Cup between the years 1884 and 1886.
10. Ashley Cole holds 7 winner’s medals. No one else has previously won so many for himself before.
11. In 1990 the three semi-final matches had a total of 16 goals. The goals were scored by 16 different players, which is really quite bizarre.
12. In 1946 and 1947 the ball actually burst in both finals, something which has not occurred since. This is likely due to the poor materials used to make the balls in post-wartime Britain and the lack of back-up balls we have today.

Are you ready to see Manchester United and Crystal Palace play in the final? We can’t wait to see who wins! If you will be watching the game live at Wembley Stadium next month, treat yourself with a luxurious stay in the 150 peaceful bedrooms at The Bull. Gerrards Cross is less than 20 minutes away from Wembley Stadium making it a convenient base.  Of course, for those of us not lucky enough to attend the final in the flesh, it will be a time of coming together at our cosy Jack Shrimpton Bar and having a few drinks as the match unfolds.

For bookings and enquiries, call us on 01753 202919 or email us at [email protected].