Date set for FA Cup final in summer

THE 2019-20 FA Cup final has been rescheduled for August 1.

The Football Association announced the dates for the final three rounds of the competition yesterday morning, following on from the Premier League confirming its intention to return on June 17 subject to Government clearance.

The competition had reached the quarter-final stage, with Newcastle United drawn at home to holders Manchester City, before professional football in England was suspended on March 13 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The four matches in the last eight will be played over the weekend of June 27 and 28, with no decision reached yet on whether these will be played on a home and away basis as normal or at neutral venues.

The semi-finals will be played on July 11 and 12, with the intention being for those matches and the final to be played at Wembley as usual. All the ties will be behind closed doors.

The Magpies have beaten Rochdale, Oxford United and West Brom in their best run in the cup since 2006.

The news will be a boost to the FA from a financial perspective, with its chief executive Mark Bullingham warning in April of the governing body suffering losses of up to £150m as a result of the disruption caused by the Covid-19 outbreak.

The arrangements for broadcasting the matches are yet to be confirmed, with BT Sport and BBC holding the UK rights.

The split for the quarter-finals had been announced in March prior to the competition being suspended, but it remains to be seen whether the same split will still apply.