The FA Cup football competition is the oldest competition in the world and was first held in 1871-72.The competition is held in England and the competitors are only eligible to play if they are teams based in Wales or England. After the Premiership this is considered the second most prestigious competition to win. There are 14 rounds in the competition with each tie being a single leg. However, if a draw results then there is a replay which can go to a penalty shootout if necessary. In the FA Cup History we have seen many exciting finals over the past 10 years! See below a list of finals over the last ten years;

1999-2000 Chelsea beating Aston Villa 1-0

2000-2001 Liverpool beating Arsenal 2-1

2001-2002 Arsenal beating Chelsea 2-1

2002-2003 Arsenal beating Southampton 1-0

2003-2004 Manchester United beating Millwall 2-0

2004-2005 Arsenal beating Manchester United on penalties

2005-2006 Liverpool beating West Ham United on penalties

2006-2007 Chelsea beating Manchester United 1-0

2007-2008 Portsmouth beating Cardiff City 1-0

2008-2009 Chelsea beating Everton 2-1

2009-2010 Chelsea beating Portsmouth 1-0

2010-2011 Manchester City beating Stoke 1-0

As you can see from the above there are examples of teams like Millwall and Cardiff, unlikely outsiders, doing well in the competition. This is where we see in FA Cup football an example of giant killing. Most recently we saw Leeds United, in January 2010 beat Manchester United at Old Trafford. This happens because, although the FA Cup is a good competition to win, it is seen as secondary to the Premiership so teams like Man United rest key players resulting in a loss, thus Leeds killed the giants. In the same month giants Arsenal were beaten by Stoke 3-1. From Leeds and Stokes point of view they must have initially thought that the FA Cup draw had been an unlucky one. However, both teams pulled it off in the end. So again we see giant killing recurring in the same competition in the same month and not even in the late stages of the cup. This backs up the theory of key players being rested due to other imminent and more important competitions. When this happened Arsenal and Manchester United were in a constant battle at the top of the Premiership fighting for the top spot which is why they didn’t put out as strong a side as usual. This is why some FA Cup football matches are ideal for betting as the returns can be quite good. William Hill were offering 8/1 odds of Leeds to beat Man U and 4/1 odds of Stoke to beat Arsenal. Both big teams lost which highlights why the FA Cup is such a hard competition to stay in for the big teams, as the managers have to weigh it up with matches that are ongoing in the league.

This year the competition is shaping up to be very interesting. When FA Cup football is live on T.V it captivates a large audience, as it is a very highly regarded competition. To reach the final is an amazing accomplishment as a team has to survive 7 rounds of competition. The FA Cup draw can be like roulette. Some teams may reach the final via an easy route, whereas others like Leeds, after beating Man United in round 3, drew a tricky tie against Tottenham Hotspur, whom they lost against. So they met Man United in round 3 and then Tottenham Hotspur in round 4. This is an example of a very unlucky route.

Round 5 is sure to see some FA Cup football classics.

Southampton versus Portsmouth Reading versus West Brom Albion

Fulham versus Notts County Chelsea versus Cardiff City

Bolton versus Tottenham Derby versus Birmingham

Manchester City versus Stoke Crystal Palace versus Aston Villa

From those selection of teams you would think that Chelsea would be the most likely to be victorious. However there are other big fish such as Tottenham, Birmingham, Man City or Aston Villa that could win and be the champions of FA Cup football. Due to the quality of these teams left there are sure to be some classic matches. In 2006 we saw West Ham and Liverpool battle it out in the final, culminating in a dramatic ending where Liverpool scored in the 90^th minute to equalise, bringing the score to 3-3, and resulting in Liverpool winning on penalties. That final left its mark in FA Cup history, and will be remembered as being one of the greats.

In recent years we have seen films like the Football Factory and Green Street emerge on our T.V screens. These films are about hooliganism in football and the story lines are linked to FA Cup football. These films use the importance and the passion that is evoked by the competition and the love for football to encourage some fans to indulge in violent behaviour. Although fictional, these films are actually alarmingly quite close to the truth. Throughout FA cup history we have seen violence between the fans particularly with Millwall, being known as the most notorious. These actions ruin the game of football and the Football Association has been trying to eliminate it from the game with some success but sadly it still occurs from time to time.

This article was written on the 4^th of February 2010 by Ian Ryan. He is the webmaster of www.footballbettingtips.co.uk and is here to pass on his knowledge of how FA Cup football operates in the UK.