Season 2021-22 marks the 150th anniversary of the world’s first and oldest Association football rules knock-out tournament, the FA Cup. Launched in 1871-72 season at the suggestion of Charles W. Alcock, the cup gave clubs something to play for other than friendlies and galvanised the sport at a time when the Rugby rules code was more popular.
My guest is Phil Annets, who runs the FA Cup Factfile feed on Twitter. His new book, FA Cup 150, is a compilation of interesting facts from the history of the FA Cup. We discuss some of the key moments in the tournament’s history, plus explore whether the cup holds the same appeal in the era of the Premier League.
We release a new podcast every Monday, so be sure to subscribe on your preferred podcast platform. We’re on Apple, Spotify, Stitcher, Player.FM and Anchor. Look for us in Google Podcasts too. We’d really appreciate a rating or view if you like what we’re doing as it helps others discover our podcast.