Read this blog on the Guardian website by Evan Fanning?? (we could have some fun with that) The FA Cup: as magical as a slot machine "The Carling Cup is now a more exciting competition than the FA Cup. It has been for a while. Like the international break before it, a weekend of fixtures in the "greatest domestic cup competition in the world" is fast becoming a chance to indulge those areas of your life that have been neglected for some time. You may decide to pay attention to the interests of your loved ones or, if that is a stretch too far, it is at least an opportunity to get back in touch with some other sports that may not ordinarily get a look in on your busy fixture list. Saturday's 3pm kick-offs were about as dull as it can possibly get. They were about as magical as a slot machine in a dingy pub and as romantic as a stroll through Amsterdam's red-light district. When Derby County versus Stoke City is the glamour tie you know you are in trouble. Defenders of the once-great competition will argue that television and police demands have moved all the good fixtures to Saturday or Sunday morning or evening or, this season, Friday night, but the real problem is that the majority of the teams taking part are not that interested in winning the competition. These problems are not new, but this weekend's games only served to underline them. Of course there was Liverpool versus Manchester United â one of the great fixtures of the English calender â but the depressingly poor standard of the game, along with unedifying behaviour among sections of both sides' support meant it was hard to rejoice in the game in any real way. In the interest of fairness, honourable mentions must go to both of Sunday's games, but the drama on show at the Stadium of Light and the Emirates only emphasised what it could be like if all teams had a real interest in winning their games. Abandoning replays, moving ties to midweek and returning the semi-finals to neutral stadiums are the solutions most often put forward to inject some life into the competition. The reality is that until there is a larger financial incentive on offer for the winner, as well as a reduction in ticket prices at grounds then the FA Cup is going to suffer. Unfortunately neither of these are likely to happen any time soon. Perhaps most worryingly of all for the FA Cup is that the ties thrown up by Sunday's fifth-round draw promise to be even worse. EF" The Carling Cup is now more exciting than the FA Cup, his opening line. Really! for who? He talks about Glamour ties to deride a meeting of Derby & Stoke and then complains about 'One of the great fixtures of the calendar' Liverpool v Man U. All this talk of Glamour says to me that he has missed the point. The media always thinks that given two top teams you will get an exciting football match, despite the opposite being the case time after time. Oh! Derby v Stoke that will be boring!! Remember our game against (obviously boring Swansea) funny thing! it was quite exciting. The FA Cup versus the Carling Cup is a no contest just compare the history. For clubs like Stevenage the Cup still has plenty of 'Glamour' In his (EF's) valuable opinion it's all about money and making the financial incentive for winning greater. I think there are a few points in here that might stir your debating juices!
To be fair we had the two racist derbies and they were a bit of a let down, not a punch thrown all game. The FA Cup could do with a CL spot for the winner to get the importance back in it. The best competitions have the best teams in it, wanting to play their best football because there's a prize worth winning but the FA Cup is slowly losing it's prestige so you need to get the big team's interest up again. The League Cup's still much worse than the FA Cup though.
Well it isnt what it used to be..but no point comparing it to the Carling cup...thats totally lost its prestige... the gap between the big teams and the minnows has increased so you dont get too many shocks nowadays.....that was the ultimate pull for the FA Cup.
I feel sorry for the most recent generation of football fans, who would have missed the buzz of the FA Cup, as it was when I was younger. Its impossible to explain what 3rd round day was like in words. The Final itself would be watched religiously with a mass lads gathering whoever was in it, which just doesn't seem to be the case these days unless your team is in it. Its a shame.
The sad truth is top 4 is the most important thing followed by not getting relegated ... Winning trophies is irrelevant compared the to premier and champions league money. Until the champions league is a competition only for champions and the premier league is made to share its money with the lower divisions it wont change....mores the pity.
Rather than the Prem share any more money with the lower leagues, which I would be completely against, and I think the Prem are too generous with parachute payments BTW, a better idea would be to share some of its money with the FA Cup and increase the prize money.
I never understand this point of view. THE MONEY is of no benefit to the fans apart from their club having more to spend on players. THE MONEY has not made the game more accessible for fans, it's the opposite in fact. THE MONEY does nothing to bring excitement to the game only to the owners bank balance. Why as fans do we support the notion of YET MORE MONEY. If I want that kind of excitement I will have a look at my bank statement. As fans surely we should be excited by the prospect of our team going to Wembley and winning a cup. If you all think it's lost it, it has, but the attitude of fans could turn that around. MONEY doesn't give a toss who wins.
I don't think prizemoney is here nor there GH tbh, its just lost its mojo, and I agree with Luke, it'll never return. We have a generation of fans who've seen the FA and Carling Cup publicly derided by managers and newspapers as a secondary hindrance every year for ages, the damage is done right there. When a top team gets near the Final, then its just lip service on how proud they are to be in it. The PL has killed it, unintentionally, but they've killed it, and not helped by media portrayal.
The FA Cup lost its lustre when the FA told Man Utd to play in the World Club Championship instead in the hope that doing so would do enough to win some votes, aiding their bid to host the 2006 World Cup.
One reason that the FA Cup has lost a little of it's gloss is that some Premier League teams would rather finish 10th and bomb out of the cups, instead of 12th whilst making progress in them. The multi-channel coverage hasn't helped either, especially as the BBC isn't involved.
I can't think of any reason the FA gave ITV the FA Cup based on merit - the only suggestions being: i.) They decided that, for the sake of "balance", the BBC shouldn't have all domestic football ii.) They got sick of Ian Wright's use of the BBC to constantly bitch at Sven for not picking Shaun Wright-Phillips iii.) The BBC forgot to bid for the FA Cup rights as they were too busy that week iv.) The BBC decided a better use of the license payers' money would be to screen every Olympic event nobody gives a Mile High Club about (i.e. 97% of them)
No doubt that the FA cup has lost a lot of the aura it had when I was a youngster. Mind you, it could suddenly become interesting again, if we get to the final.
Fair comments NSS, but I do think the prize money makes a difference. Why is the Prem so much more important vis a vis the FA Cup, than the old Div 1 was? Many factors, but surely a key one is the money pumped into the Prem. You used to get no prize money for either competition when I stated following football in the 50s. Now the Prem winner gets about £50m in total of merit money and TV money, the FA Cup winner will get about £5m I think. My figures may be fairly inaccurate, but I think there's no arguing Prem teams get a lot money from the Prem prize and TV pool, than they get from the FA Cup pools. Indeed the FA Cup was in some senses superior financially, as it used to generate more gate receipts on average than Lge games, (generally speaking teams saved players for big FA Cup games, games which attracted above average attendances and raised more revenue for the club). Now, roughly, there is a ten fold difference in the prize money/tv money on offer in favour of the Lge. An absolute turn around It's hard to compare exactly and I admit my figures are guess work, but to me bringing the FA Cup prize money up, and the Prem money down correspondingly, would help teams take the Cup more seriously.
The last one I remember getting a real build-up was the '96 final between Man Utd and Liverpool. Ever since there's been the idea it'll be a procession as, by and large, the final always features one of the Big Clubs taking on a mid-table side, with occasional breaks for Championship clubs or teams that were relegated from the Premier League the previous weekend.
Agreed. The Prem cares about the Prem, and with valid reason. It might conceivably help the FA Cup a little, but not in any significant way, AFAICS.
Point is Luke, not every team can be in the CL. For those teams, the likes of Man U not taking it as seriously could mean a trip to Wembley. Two teams in the top 4 in the final is a turn-off for most fans anyway, despite what the media may like us to believe. Also the financial hamster-wheel that teams find themselves in once they are in the premiership, means there is a survival at all costs (including the cup) attitude. A CL place for the winner, as YV says would help focus minds a little, and the FA need to up their game marketing the competition. Really teams like yours are wrapped up in their own self-importance and have their own agendas which have nothing to do with the traditions of the game or the good of the game as a whole. Like most (English) football fans think England is important, but a large number of Mancs Scousers and Gooners (probably Citeh now too) don't. They have the money and hold sway with the media, but the majority of fans don't hold those opinions.
Has the Fa Cup become boring because we've been in the CL? I think so. before the CL I was only too pleased to be in any competition but now all I want is the CL and nothing less.
In the case of Citeh, winning it last season was important - it justified the amount of money they spent just to get one poxy banner taken down inside the Theatre of Schemes...
