The magic of the cup. An overused cliché that has been thrown on top of anything the FA Cup has had to offer than resembles a shock since most people care to remember.
Ronnie Radford’s long range strike for Hereford in ’72. The magic of the cup.
Sutton United’s famous victory over top-flight Coventry in ’89. The magic of the cup.
Newcastle, Sunderland, Aston Villa, QPR, Norwich, Liverpool, Spurs and Arsenal have all fallen foul to the world’s oldest cup competition’s wizardly ways this season. Yet, in recent years, it seems at least in some fan’s eyes the Cup’s powers are waning. Increasingly we are told to question whether the magic of the cup is ‘alive and kicking’ and how the ‘cup’s never been the same since United opted out in 2000’.
With it being quarter final weekend, it seems like as good as time as any to finally put to bed once and for all whether the magic of the cup rumbles on, and if not, then why not?
Brazil of all places is where will shall start, and to those who doubt the current sorcery of the competition, this seems to be the most popular scapegoat for the cup’s demise. On the back of their momentous 1999 treble victory, Manchester United were invited to take part in the inaugural FIFA Club World Championship, a continental competition, pitting the best the world had to offer against each other. However, in order to take part, United would have to postpone fixtures already allocated, which would include them not entering the FA Cup that year.
To cut a long story short, United, pressurised by the FA to travel to Rio, in what they hoped would be a successful tournament for the English Champions, helping them achieve their ultimate aim of hosting the 2006 World Cup, entered the tournament, finished third in their group, failing to create the hype about English football those in Soho Square had hoped for and returned home to a barrage of criticism. So, although United acted in a way that showed the FA Cup a lack of respect, Sir Alex Ferguson, or indeed anybody at the Old Trafford club cannot take anywhere near all the blame for the cup’s apparent recent depreciation in value. Although Ferguson is guilty, albeit not solely, for the next reason we shall analyse.
Too many times in recent years, cup ties have been thrown away due to weakened teams being fielded, amidst grueling fixture schedules and more ‘important’ ties. One man, along with Ferguson, who has been guilty more that most when it comes to this is Arsene Wenger. You only have to go back a number of weeks to see how a team Wenger fielded, with one eye on a European tie they were unlikely to prosper from, was unable to beat lower division Blackburn at the Emirates. Wenger has made it clear that he views Champions League qualification as a more important achievement for the Gunners, describing it as a ‘trophy’ more valuable in his eyes than the FA Cup. And whilst, financially at least ,it is difficult to pick a hole in the Frenchman’s argument, it only adds to the impression many fans are getting, that the cup is no longer a prize that is seen as an ultimate priority for the top echelon of clubs in England.
A wider problem that is hitting the cup competition extremely hard is the sheer expense of football in the modern era. Ticket prices are at an all-time high, and whilst a number of clubs have special pricing strategies for the Capital One Cup (the FA Cup’s ugly sister in recent years, which incidentally this season been lauded for its entertaining football, and obviously the outstanding achievements of fourth tier Bradford City) the same cannot be said for the FA Cup. Loftus Road was less than half full for QPR’s third round 1-1 draw with West Brom, a fixture which was played 10 days previous in the Premier League, and attracted more than double that number of spectators.
It seems if you’re going to pay silly amounts of money for a season ticket and all the accessories that go with attending a football match, fans might be left a little frustrated if you make them pay 30 quid for a tie that the manager clearly doesn’t give a sod about, and so reflects so in his line up.
So seemingly so far, if anyone’s to blame for the cup’s faltering hierarchical position when compared with more glamorous European prizes, it’s the clubs that are competing who are most at fault. However, in my view at least, if anybody has blood on their hands, it’s the FA itself. We’ve seen how as early as 2000, they sold out in the hope they’d host football’s biggest prize six years later. Therefore, after failing on this front, you’d think they’d learn their lesson.
Don’t be silly.
The fact the semi-finals are played at Wembley is quite obviously a joke of a decision made by some suit high up in the FA. The Football Association’s priorities couldn’t be clearer. Villa Park and Old Trafford being used as neutral venues is a huge part of the tradition of the FA Cup. But, hey, why bother with tradition when we can line the coffers with a shed load of cash that could have been generated with a multitude of music concerts and alternative sporting events during the off season?
Yet it gets worse. Not only are these ties unnecessarily played at the home of English football (if you could describe that soulless bowl as anybody’s home – a conversation for another day), but Manchester City in 2011 were given 31,500 tickets to their semi- final with neighbours United, who received the same number. Now, you don’t have to be a mathematical genius to realise that 90,000-31,500-31,500 equals too many left over for corporate bigwigs and sponsors. It used to nearly be split 50-50, almost as if they cared about the fans of the two teams taking part. Ridiculous, I know…
And we haven’t even got to the most glaringly obvious reason that the FA Cup is losing its touch. When the winners of the trophy (invariably Chelsea – they always bloody win it) walk up the famous steps and are given the trophy by someone important from somewhere important, over the PA, the announcer will declare ‘The winners of the FA Cup by Budweiser – X FC!’.
I don’t see the FA Cup ever ceasing to exist. Yet the values and traditions that made it what it once was – the most important domestic cup competition in the world – are slowly draining away. I hope these never fully die, but if one day they do, just don’t be surprised if the cause of death is alcohol poisoning.
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