Has FA Cup become a farce?

premiership sides away to EFL opposition keep sending B teams

The EFL teams are often playing their reserves too.

It's less of a farce for most PL sides since they introduced the EL place for winning it. But no CL club or club with its eyes on top 5 should be prioritising it and they generally play second string until the SF. If they took 30m from the PL pool and gave it as a prize it would be different. A drop in the ocean.

The reality is for the top clubs and fans of the top clubs, is that the growth of the Champions League, i.e, more teams being allowed in, has simply diluted the mystique and magic of the cup, that along with the saturation of football coverage and content in general available on a multitude of differing platforms thanks to the exponential technological advancements over the years in regards to the internet, streaming and on demand services, people can now watch what they want, when they want, how they want, years ago the FA Cup final could be the only live football match most people would see on terrestrial tv in a whole season so it stands to reason that by nature and over time, it will have lost a lost of it's appeal, grandeur and prestige in the hearts and minds of the average supporter of a super club, especially the younger generation who are no longer even old enough to remember CD's and DVD's.

It's also no where near important or relevant to the owners because of money, even since Sky came on the scene 30 odds years ago drowning the league in cash with their huge broadcasting deals and the league being sold around the world, millionaire owners became billionaire owners, billionaire owned sides morphed into state run clubs and with it they  all have bare minimal interest in a little cup that gives them very little monetary rewards let alone credibility amongst their wealthy playmates, and no manager is judged by it in turn. Brentford being the Premier League pauper as the only club not owned by someone worth at least 10 figures but it's only a matter of time before that changes being a London club.

Fans of clubs not traditionally in Europe or in the lowers leagues will still love a cup run, but the days of it being the pinnacle of English football for all fans alike have long since gone and wont be coming back, 17th in the league is worth more than an FA Cup economically and for attracting players thanks to the wages a Premier League side could offer them. Wenger was right when he said top 4 was a trophy, because being in the Champions League means more to modern day fans, modern day players and modern day owners than the a domestic cup competition does. The dwindling interest is reflected by the TV coverage, no longer has it's own day, no longer has several hours worth of build up and in some years has even been sandwiched in between Premier League matches which tells you where television's priorities lie. It was great whilst it lasted but we've outgrown it as a nation, bit like Soap Operas, used to be 20 million watching per episode, an era where Soap stars where Rock stars, now less than 2 million and you wouldn't recognise any of them if they walked past you in the street.

Kind Regards.

grayhawk10 Feb 25 02:32Joined: 05 Oct 06 | Topic/replies: 30,172 | Blogger: grayhawk's blog
It's sad that the youth of today will never begin to realise JUST HOW BIG the FA Cup used to be

Top post, and may I add in home internationals possibly ?

let the  franchises in the prem league go to their European super league and let the normal clubs get on with reclaiming our  great domestic heritage.

Great post mes

I've found this weeks FA Cup a nightmare to bet on.

The Filbert St pitch would have been a cabbage field after 6 hours of football in 7 days

and liverpool drawing 2-2 at anfield with doncaster rover, keegan, heighway, hughes et al

Utd should have fielded a reserve side in the Cup that year though would probably have been criticised for that as well.

The FA were desperate for Utd to play in the Club World Championship with a view to their World cup bid.

Have to say there were some worrying low attendances in the FA Cup over the weekend so it's not entirely an illusion that the lustre of the comp is fading..(something I certainly take no joy in).

That was the 2000 fa cup sparrow which leads to the question who knocked Darlington out of that seasons fa cup ?

I remember at school (so it would be mid to late '70s) someone had brought a tranny radio in on the monday, so that we could hear the Cup draw at lunchtime.
A few of us had gathered around the radio to listen... and when Wolves were drawn out first, we all went beserk, cheering and making a racket... problem was, nobody had heard who we had been drawn to play.
We had to wait till the end of the draw and they went through it again to find out who we were gonna play

My team was in 3 semi final draws in the 70s and whilst who we got was important where the game as played was just as important however that wouldn’t be announced until later in the day or even the next day.

It's a different world today... kids now would have no clue what a transistor radio was

Yes Brentford it usually was those to although places like main road ,gooderson and even highfield road got games.

Would that be 81 at Highbury?

I'm not sure ... but '81 is about right.

2-2 draw at Hillsborough ... then replay at Arsenal.. Spurs won 3-0 with a wonder goal from Ricky Villa

Yes Brentford Southampton beat palace at Stamford bridge in 76

JR still known as The King around here.... he was actually awarded "The freedom of the city" just a couple of weeks ago