Non-league fans want to keep cup replays – FSA Survey

The FA Cup retains its importance to fans of the non-league game, who are overwhelmingly in favour of retaining replays in the competition’s qualifying rounds, according to an FSA survey.

A total of 754 fans from all levels of the non-league game – from the National League to Step 6 and below – took part in the survey.

91% of respondents were in favour of retaining replays up to and including the FA Cup Fourth Qualifying Round, the last stage before clubs from the EFL enter the competition at the First Round.

Just over a third of fans (35%) said the FA Cup was the most important competition that their side plays in, while a further 45% said it was more important than others.

As one respondent commented, ”There’s no competition on the planet that gets close to the level of jeopardy and excitement.”

Supporters back replays because of the extra revenue opportunities they offer to clubs (90%) and the role that tradition plays in the oldest cup competition in the world (85%). Six in ten fans (60%) supported them because of the fairness inherent in having replays.

Only around one in twenty fans surveyed (6%) wanted to scrap replays, with the burden of short-notice fixture arrangements (55%) and an already too crowded fixture list (52%) the most popular reasons given for doing so.

The survey followed the FA and Premier League’s joint announcement in April 2024 that replays would be dropped from the first round onwards.

“If decisions are to be made on the earlier rounds of the competition, we feel it is vital that fans have a voice in that process. The results are conclusive and show that non-league football fans overwhelmingly value the importance of FA Cup replays,” said Matthew Kempson, National Game Network representative of the FSA National Council.

“These games create lifelong memories for fans, and we will share the data from this survey with the game’s decision makers.”

The FSA holds regular structured dialogue meetings with the FA across a range of topics affecting both the men’s and womens’ game, with the next meeting due in October.