FA Accused of Lying about FA Cup Replays as English Football Nears Civil War
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The scrapping of FA Cup replays has sparked a fierce backlash across the English game. Millwall chief Steve Kavanagh has questioned the Football Association (FA) over their insistence that ‘all parties’ agreed with the decision to scrap FA Cup replays.
The changes, which will come into play next season as part of a new deal with the Premier League, have been widely criticized since they were announced on Thursday. The FA responded to the backlash by insisting in a statement that scrapping replays was ‘discussed in the early meetings and all parties accepted that they could not continue’.
The EFL went on to issue a statement of their own, claiming there was ‘no agreement’ and that member clubs were not involved in ‘any formal consultation’. Kavanagh, who is also on the Professional Game Board, said he had no advance warning of the move that was about to be taken by the governing body.
When approached for comment by Express Sport, the FA said the Professional Game Board was part of the process and approved the changes. In their public statement, which was released on Friday morning, the governing body said: “We have been discussing the calendar for the 2024-25 season with the Premier League and EFL for well over a year.
“Removing Emirates FA Cup replays was discussed in the early meetings and all parties accepted that they could not continue.” Meanwhile, it has been reported by the Daily Mail that some lower-league clubs have raised the prospect of boycotting the FA Cup in response to replays being scrapped.
Some fans have expressed their opposition to the controversial FA Cup changes on social media, while others have taken a different approach by making themselves heard at games. A group of Oxford United supporters held up a protest banner during their match against Stevenage on Friday night, which simply read: “FA CUP – R.I.P.”
