Bring back the Magic of the FA Cup

Those of us who grew up before the turn of the century will remember the FA Cup when it truly was magic. If you agree with any of these simple suggestions for the FA returning the biggest club competition in the world to its former glory then simply sign the petition and suggest that others do the same.

1. Give the 4th Champions League place to the winner. The big clubs have been playing weaker teams in the competition for many years. This simple switch will ensure that they don't. We all know that the FA want to send the four strongest teams into the Champions League to represent England. They fear that by giving the 4th spot to the FA Cup winner rather than to the 4th place team in the Premier League that they will be sending a weaker team into the Champions League. The only reason that weaker teams have been successful in the FA Cup in recent years is because the stronger teams no longer prioritise the competition. Before the turn of the century you can count on one hand the number of times a "weaker" team has won the tournament.

2. No Wembley Semi Finals. The FA Semi final used to be one of the best games of the season. An FA Cup final appearance at Wembley at stake. Huge pressure. Huge tension. Capacity crowds. Playing the semi finals at Wembley detracts from the final. The main benefit is more fans can attend, generating more income for all concerned. We acknowledge that planning is also easier when the venue is fixed but you could fix the two neutral semi final venues early in the season as well. Finance over magic. Please stop playing the semi finals at Wembley. It's killing the final.

3. Play the FA Cup Final after the league programme has finished. The FA Cup Final must be the climax of the season. By playing it before the League competitions have ended reduces the importance of the game and detracts from its spectacle.

4. Offer more prize money. As the competition regains its original magic, the sponsorship for the competition will increase. Increased prize money can be offered for progressing in the competition, further motivating clubs to succeed.

5. 3rd Round on Boxing Day. By moving this most magical of rounds just before the new year (before the emotional & financial deflation of the nation) it will make the 3rd round even more magical than it ever has been. A simple fixture change could allow this to happen.

6. FA Cup Fanfare. The Champions League theme tune has become synonymous with the competition. The FA should follow suit by finding a dramatic piece of music which becomes associated with the completion. Just with the CL, it can be played at all games prior to kick off – again, differentiating the game from a regular league game.

7. British competition. While many traditionalists, might feel this is farfetched, it would bring a great deal of excitement many supporters. There are many ways that this can be achieved and no-one is suggesting making the competition British from the early qualifying rounds. The suggestions are that, providing the Scottish (and possibly Welsh & Northern Ireland) FAs are interested, the final 16 from Scotland and the final 8 from Wales and Northern Island could be introduced into round 2 or 3 of the competition. An extra round will need to be added to the competition. There then comes the obvious fixture congestion arguments but there must be a space for one extra game. English football fans would be excited at the prospect of playing Celtic, Rangers, Hearts, Aberdeen, Hibs and the other large Scottish teams. And the opportunity to go to some new grounds for away fans would be tremendous. Naysayers might point to the extra distances for clubs and fans to travel. Fans in France, Germany, Italy & Spain have to travel these distances every week. England is one of the smallest nations in Europe, so the size of Britain does not make distances insurmountable.

8. 3pm Kick off. While evening kick off time opens up the USA viewing market and prime time advertising opportunities, again, this decision is one of finance over magic.

One of the most magical elements of the FA Cup is the giant killing. This magic has almost gone now. It's not a giant killing when Wolves beat Manchester Utd reserves.

The FA might argue that FA Cup attendances are increasing every year. We have seen games between two Premier League teams attracting under 10,000. We would see every game reaching capacity with the simple implementation of some of the above changes.

While the Premier League and the Champions League are both incredible competitions, the vast majority of football fans do not support teams in these competitions. We all support teams who play in the FA Cup every season and we'd love for that competition to be magical once again.

There are, of course, many ways to assess the success of the competition. We can look at sponsorship. We can consider overall attendances. We can monitor how many first choice players are rested for the games. We can compare attendances of specific teams against their average league attendances. We can carry out as large quantities of statistical analysis which enable us to conclude many things, but the general perception among the fans is that the magic of the FA cup is no longer.

Come on Football Association. Bring back the magic.

We, the fans, would love it.

http://www.change.org/p/david-gill-bring-back-the-magic-of-the-fa-cup

 

I agree with both of the above posts. I think it was Clive W who said in his match report following the Burton game that we '' Get ourselves knocked out of a competition that we have a chance of winning. So that we can compete in a competition that we have no chance of winning.''