If you are disappointed to discover there are no Premier League matches this weekend, don’t start making alternative plans just yet.
The third round of the FA Cup, the world’s oldest football tournament, welcomes England’s top-flight clubs in a bumper weekend.
In total, there are 32 matches, pitting teams from across England’s football pyramid. Nowhere is the gap bigger than at sixth-tier Macclesfield, who welcome last season’s winners, Crystal Palace.
The FA Cup is famed for its giant-killings, throwing up games that have never been played and where Premier League clubs carry all the pressure and expectation. This weekend’s matches will all be played to a finish, with extra time and penalties if required and no replays.
The Athletic takes a look at some of the standout stories, what time they start, why you should watch them and where you can tune in.
Can Wrexham earn a top-flight scalp?
Since Rob McElhenney (now Mac) and Ryan Reynolds became Wrexham’s co-owners in September 2020, the club have enjoyed a rapid rise, with three successive promotions landing them in England’s second tier — where they are only one point off the play-offs and six away from the automatic promotion spots.
There has been no shortage of drama along the way, but Wrexham are yet to face a Premier League side under their owners. That changes on Friday night, when Phil Parkinson’s side welcome Nottingham Forest to the Racecourse Ground.
In truth, this competition is unlikely to be a priority for Sean Dyche’s Forest. Their midweek win at West Ham United ended a run of four successive defeats and opened up a seven-point gap between the sides, easing Forest’s relegation concerns.
Forest are still involved in the Europa League this season and will be wary of a fixture backlog. They are likely to heavily rotate for this fixture, potentially playing into Wrexham’s favour.
The most memorable FA Cup moment at Wrexham in recent times was a thrilling 3-3 draw against Sheffield United, then three divisions above them in the Championship, in the fourth round, in January 2023, before Sheffield United won the replay 3-1.
Cup holders looking to avoid a non-League banana skin
Crystal Palace won the FA Cup for the first time last season, with a memorable underdog victory against Manchester City in the final. Oliver Glasner’s side will have entirely different expectations against National League North side Macclesfield.
Palace are without a win in eight matches in all competitions and their busy Conference League schedule means the FA Cup does not carry quite the same importance for the club, but anything other than a comfortable victory at the 5,300-capacity Moss Rose would be unthinkable.
Crystal Palace’s FA Cup parade outside Selhurst Park in May (Tom Dulat/Getty Images)
Macclesfield’s FA Cup campaign began on September 13, with a 3-0 home win over Atherton Laburnum Rovers of the North West Counties League Premier Division in the second qualifying round. They then beat Nantwich Town and Stamford in their third- and fourth-round qualifiers.
The first round proper is where English Football League (EFL) — the Championship, League One and League Two — clubs enter, but Macclesfield avoided those sides, facing fellow sixth-tier teams AFC Totton and Slough Town in the first and second rounds before being drawn against Palace.
Macclesfield were formed in October 2020 as a phoenix club from Macclesfield Town, a former regular in the EFL who were wound up over outstanding debts. Their manager, John Rooney, is the younger brother of former Manchester United and England star Wayne Rooney.
Despite a recent rise through the pyramid, Macclesfield, whose squad includes former Manchester United full-back Cameron Borthwick-Jackson, are 14th in the National League North, but their artificial-turf 4G pitch and unglamorous facilities will hand Palace a challenge they would prefer to have avoided.
Can Fletcher and Rosenior secure first wins?
Manchester United and Chelsea have had turbulent starts to the year, to say the least.
The exits of Ruben Amorim and Enzo Maresca have brought off-field upheaval. Darren Fletcher stepped up from his role with United’s under-18s to take charge of the midweek draw at Burnley and will oversee the cup game at home to Brighton & Hove Albion, before an interim coach — which could be Fletcher — is appointed for the remainder of the campaign.
Darren Fletcher will oversee United’s clash with Brighton (Carl Recine/Getty Images)
United defeated Brighton 4-2 at Old Trafford earlier in the campaign and the early signs suggest Fletcher will favour an attack-minded, front-footed approach that could bring a similarly open game against Fabian Hurzeler’s side. Without European football and following their embarrassing Carabao Cup exit at the hands of Grimsby Town, the FA Cup is United’s only realistic chance at silverware this season.
Chelsea are two points off the Champions League qualification places but are winless in five and Wednesday’s 2-1 loss at Fulham saw their fans chant for the club’s owners to leave the club.
The negative mood puts immediate pressure on Liam Rosenior to right the ship when he takes charge of his first match at Championship side Charlton Athletic on Saturday night.
Charlton, 19th in the second tier, are managed by Nathan Jones, whose short 2022-23 stint in charge of Southampton included a memorable Carabao Cup win over Manchester City, who won a treble that season.
Will the giant-killing tables turn?
Grimsby provided an upset for the ages when they eliminated Manchester United from the Carabao Cup in August. The League Two side are in the FA Cup third round, but will take on the role of strong favourites.
They host Weston-super-Mare, a sixth-tier National League South side who have reached this stage of the FA Cup for the first time in their 138-year history.
Weston-super-Mare are second in the league and aiming for promotion (their higher league position over fellow sixth-tier side Macclesfield makes them the second-lowest-ranked team left). They will be notable underdogs against Grimsby, who reached the quarter-final stage in 2022-23 in a run that included a victory at Southampton, then in the Premier League.
Weston-super-Mare required a replay to overcome Taunton Town in the second qualifying round, before subsequent qualifying victories over Poole Town and Needham Market. They then defeated Aldershot Town, one division above them, in the first round before victory at National League South rivals Chelmsford City in the second round.
Premier League coaches in the hot seat
West Ham’s Nuno Espirito Santo and Tottenham Hotspur’s Thomas Frank desperately need positive results this weekend.
The head coaches are under pressure due to a prolonged spell of underwhelming results and performances, operating in increasingly pressurised environments with unhappy fanbases.
West Ham and Spurs were handed home ties for this round but they may not bring home comforts. West Ham have the Premier League’s second-worst home record — seven points from 11 games, marginally better than Wolverhampton Wanderers. Spurs are only two points better off from their 10 home games. The London clubs have also been handed difficult opponents.
Nuno’s side welcome fellow London side Queens Park Rangers, who are three points off the Championship promotion play-offs. QPR will have 9,000 fans travelling from west to east to back their side, and will fancy their chances of a top-flight scalp.
Spurs, meanwhile, welcome Aston Villa, who have already won at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium this season and eliminated the north London side from last season’s FA Cup at the fourth-round stage.
How to watch the FA Cup third round
(All times ET/GMT and broadcasters ESPN in the United States/TNT Sports in the UK unless stated. Saturday 3pm matches not broadcast in the U.K.)
Friday:
- Wrexham vs Nottingham Forest, 2.30pm/7.30pm
- MK Dons vs Oxford United, 2.30pm/7.30pm
- Preston North End vs Wigan Athletic, 2.30pm/7.30pm
- Port Vale vs Fleetwood Town, 2.30pm/7.30pm
Saturday:
- Everton vs Sunderland, 7.15am/12.15pm (Fubo in the U.S.)
- Macclesfield vs Crystal Palace, 7.15am/12.15pm (BBC and TNT Sports in the UK)
- Wolverhampton Wanderers vs Shrewsbury Town, 7.15am/12.15pm
- Cheltenham Town vs Leicester City, 7.15am/12.15pm
- Boreham Wood vs Burton Albion, 10am/3pm
- Burnley vs Millwall, 10am/3pm
- Doncaster Rovers vs Southampton, 10am/3pm
- Fulham vs Middlesbrough, 10am/3pm
- Ipswich Town vs Blackpool, 10am/3pm
- Manchester City vs Exeter City, 10am/3pm
- Newcastle United vs Bournemouth, 10am/3pm
- Sheffield Wednesday vs Bournemouth, 10am/3pm
- Stoke City vs Coventry City, 10am/3pm
- Tottenham Hotspur vs Aston Villa, 12.45pm/5.45pm (BBC and TNT Sports in the UK)
- Grimsby Town vs Weston-super-Mare, 12.45pm/5.45pm
- Cambridge United vs Birmingham City, 12.45pm/5.45pm
- Bristol City vs Waford, 12.45pm/5.45pm
- Charlton Athletic vs Chelsea, 3pm/8pm
*Salford City vs Swindon Town postponed due to weather
Sunday:
- Derby County vs Leeds United, 7am/12pm
- Portsmouth vs Arsenal, 9am/2pm (Fubo in the U.S.)
- West Ham United vs Queens Park Rangers, 9.30am/2.30pm
- Norwich City vs Walsall, 9.30am/2.30pm
- Swansea City vs West Bromwich Albion, 9.30am/2.30pm
- Hull City vs Blackburn Rovers, 9.30am/2.30pm
- Sheffield United vs Mansfield Town, 9.30am/2.30pm
- Manchester United vs Brighton & Hove Albion, 11.30pm/4.30pm
Monday:
- Liverpool vs Barnsley, 2.45pm/7.45pm
FA Cup 2025-26 key dates
- Third round: Weekend of Saturday, January 10
- Fourth round: Weekend of Saturday, February 14
- Fifth round: Weekend of Saturday, March 7
- Quarter-finals: Weekend of Saturday, April 4
- Semi-finals: Weekend of Saturday, April 25
- Final: Saturday, May 16
