This weekend we saw Chelsea win the FA Cup (again). The final was surprisingly good, the 2nd half anyway. We have become used to drab affairs with neither team wanting to lose as opposed to both going out to win. The score lines are always tight, in fact you have to go back to 2003/04 to get a winner by more than one goal and that was Man utd v Millwall, so not too surprising. In recent memory and with help of Wikipedia the most open cup final and the most entertaining was Liverpool vs West ham that was 3-3. This was truly a great match with both teams playing end to end stuff and some great goals for good measure, these games are hardly the norm. Now its not the FA's fault that these games are tight cagey affairs and my proposals will not make the final any more open or teams less afraid to lose them but it would (I believe) add more to a tournament that seems to be losing it audience every year.
FA Cup final day used to be one of favourite days of the year. Waking up to watch coverage of the great finals of previous years. Seeing the likes of Alan Sunderland slot home late to finally kill off a resilient Man utd side. Or Cantona scoring in the 85th minute against Liverpool, sorry for the utd bias. It was great to see the route of the two finalists, see who they beat in the 3rd round and their form coming in to the final. Of course this is still available to view before a game and coverage can start when you wake up providing you get out of bed around 2pm. This the is first problem the FA should address. Move it to 3pm! The reason for the 5o'clock kick off is for 'commercial reasons'. The FA Cup will still be premium advertising no matter what the kick off time. 3o'clock on a Saturday is when the game is supposed to be played. Its tradition, its a way of life. Moving for 'commercial reasons' might increase value to the FA but instantly knocks off value for those who used to cherish the tournament.
I touched on the fact that the game should be played on Saturday, luckily this hasn't changed yet, but this should be a Saturday after the season has finished. It's the season curtain closer. All has been settled in the league, now for one last domestic swan song of the year. Who can afford to care about the final if they are travelling to watch their own team or their team is playing tomorrow. If the league is settled on the same weekend as the FA Cup who is going to dominate the papers? The answer this season being City. It's not giving the final a chance and by the FA's logic this is surely making it less commercial.
Semi-finals. Teams have done well to reach them and they are only one game away from reaching the promised land of Wembley. That's how it used to be anyway. Anyone and everyone has played at Wembley now. No longer is it just a pitch for finalists; its a pitch for the also rans, those who weren't quite good enough. It should be for those who deserve to tread the hallowed turf. It should be a truly humbling experience for the captain to walk his brave soldiers to face battle in front of 90000 people, they shouldn't have done the same thing two weeks ago. If the FA Cup has lost its sense of occasion then surely changing this would help claw some back.
My final point may be some what controversial given the fact my first two are hardly unheard of ideas. I think the winner of the FA Cup should have allocated a Champions league place. A position amongst Europe's elite for one of England's elite. If a team finish 4th every year and do not win a trophy (Arsenal) then how can they demand a spot in the league? Perhaps if a team that wins the trophy finish higher than 3rd or wins the Champions league then the entrance can be passed to 4th place. This would encourage teams to take the FA Cup seriously at all round and think twice before playing such an experimental team. As well as rewarding those such as Portsmouth FC with a treat in to ground normally fiercely guarded by the 'big four' thus distributing the wealth that comes with the European ground more equally.
These are just 3 ideas that could re-capture the draw of the FA Cup and get teams as well as fans' interest again. Its time the FA gave the cup the credibility it deserves and whatever you do, don't get me started on corporate seats.....
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