| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Country | England Wales |
| Defending champions | Liverpool |
| Final positions | |
| Champions | West Ham United (2nd title) |
| Runners-up | Fulham |
The1974–75 FA Cup was the 94th season of the world's oldestfootballcup competition, the Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as theFA Cup.West Ham United won the competition, beatingSecond Division sideFulham 2–0 in thefinal atWembley, London.
Matches were scheduled to be played at the stadium of the team named first on the date specified for each round, which was always a Saturday. If scores were level after 90 minutes had been played, a replay would take place at the stadium of the second-named team later the same week. If the replayed match was drawn further replays would be held until a winner was determined. If scores were level after 90 minutes had been played in a replay, a 30-minute period ofextra time would be played.
| Round | Date |
|---|---|
| Preliminary round | Saturday, 31 August 1974 |
| First qualifying round | Saturday, 14 September 1974 |
| Second qualifying round | Saturday, 5 October 1974 |
| Third qualifying round | Saturday, 19 October 1974 |
| Fourth qualifying round | Saturday, 2 November 1974 |
| First round proper | Saturday, 23 November 1974 |
| Second round proper | Saturday, 14 December 1974 |
| Third round proper | Saturday, 4 January 1975 |
| Fourth round proper | Saturday, 25 January 1975 |
| Fifth round proper | Saturday, 15 February 1975 |
| Sixth round proper | Saturday, 8 March 1975 |
| Semi-finals | Saturday, 5 April 1975 |
| Final | Saturday, 3 May 1975 |
Most participating clubs that were not members of theFootball League competed in the qualifying rounds to secure one of 28 places available in the first round.
The winners from the fourth qualifying round wereBlyth Spartans,Gateshead United,Bishop Auckland,Altrincham,Oswestry Town,Wigan Athletic,Marine,Farsley Celtic,Nuneaton Borough,Matlock Town,Stafford Rangers,Boston United,AP Leamington,Kettering Town,Ashford Town (Kent),Romford,Hitchin Town,Wycombe Wanderers,Chelmsford City,Slough Town,Tooting & Mitcham United,Wimbledon,Maidstone United,Leatherhead,Southwick,Weymouth,Cheltenham Town andBath City.
Appearing in the competition proper for the first time were Farsley Celtic, AP Leamington, Maidstone United, Leatherhead and Southwick. Of the others, Bishop Auckland, Ashford Town (Kent) and Bath City had last featured at this stage in1966–67, Tooting & Mitcham United had last done so in1963-64, Oswestry Town and Matlcok Town had last done so in1959-60, and Marine had last done so in1947-48.
Gateshead United had relocated fromSouth Shields during the summer of 1974 following the dissolution ofGateshead AFC. Although the club had qualified for the main draw of the Cup in each of the previous six seasons under its former name, this season marked the first time a club from Gateshead would be featuring in the first round since1965-66.
At this stage the 48 clubs from theFootball League Third andFourth Division joined thenon-league clubs who came through the qualifying rounds. To complete this round, non-league sidesMorecambe,Dartford,Bishop's Stortford andIlford were given byes as the finalists from the previous season'sFA Trophy andFA Amateur Cup respectively. During the 1974 close season the Football Association decided to abolish the distinction between amateur and professional clubs, resulting in the permanent cessation of the FA Amateur Cup. The annual finalists from the replacement competition for lower-level clubs, known as theFA Vase, would not receive byes to the first round of the FA Cup in subsequent seasons.
Matches were scheduled to be played on Saturday, 23 November 1974. Twelve matches were drawn, of which one required a second replay.
The matches were scheduled for Saturday, 14 December 1974. Five matches were drawn, with replays taking place later the same week.
The 44First andSecond Division clubs entered the competition at this stage. The matches were scheduled Saturday, 4 January 1975. Eleven matches were drawn, of which two required second replays. Stafford Rangers became the first non-league club to defeat three Football League opponents in one tournament since Peterborough United in1959–60.
The matches were scheduled for Saturday, 25 January 1975. Four matches were drawn, of which one, the tie betweenFulham andNottingham Forest, required three replays. Holders Liverpool were eliminated by Ipswich Town.Wimbledon,Stafford Rangers andLeatherhead were the last non-league clubs left in the competition.
| Tie no | Home team | Score | Away team | Date | Attendance | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bury | 1–2 | Mansfield Town | 25 January 1975 | ||
| 2 | Walsall | 1–0 | Newcastle United | 25 January 1975 | 19,998 | [16] |
| 3 | Leatherhead | 2–3 | Leicester City | 25 January 1975 | 32,000 | [B][1] |
| 4 | Aston Villa | 4–1 | Sheffield United | 25 January 1975 | ||
| 5 | Middlesbrough | 3–1 | Sunderland | 25 January 1975 | 39,400 | [13] |
| 6 | Derby County | 2–0 | Bristol Rovers | 27 January 1975 | 27,980 | [22] |
| 7 | Stafford Rangers | 1–2 | Peterborough United | 25 January 1975 | 31,160 | [A][6] |
| 8 | Ipswich Town | 1–0 | Liverpool | 25 January 1975 | 34,709 | [12] |
| 9 | Queens Park Rangers | 3–0 | Notts County | 24 January 1975 | 23,428 | [10] |
| 10 | Fulham | 0–0 | Nottingham Forest | 28 January 1975 | 14,846 | [1] |
| Replay | Nottingham Forest | 1–1 | Fulham | 3 February 1975 | 25,361 | [1] |
| 2nd replay | Fulham | 1–1 | Nottingham Forest | 5 February 1975 | 11,920 | [1] |
| 3rd replay | Nottingham Forest | 1–2 | Fulham | 10 February 1975 | 23,240 | [1] |
| 11 | Coventry City | 1–1 | Arsenal | 25 January 1975 | ||
| Replay | Arsenal | 3–0 | Coventry City | 29 January 1975 | 30,867 | [1] |
| 12 | West Ham United | 1–1 | Swindon Town | 25 January 1975 | 35,679 | [9] |
| Replay | Swindon Town | 1–2 | West Ham United | 28 January 1975 | 27,749 | [9] |
| 13 | Plymouth Argyle | 1–3 | Everton | 25 January 1975 | 38,000 | [15] |
| 14 | Carlisle United | 3–2 | West Bromwich Albion | 25 January 1975 | ||
| 15 | Chelsea | 0–1 | Birmingham City | 25 January 1975 | 36,650 | [14] |
| 16 | Leeds United | 0–0 | Wimbledon | 25 January 1975 | 46,230 | [19] |
| Replay | Wimbledon | 0–1 | Leeds United | 10 February 1975 | 45,071 | [C][19] |
The matches were scheduled for Saturday, 15 February 1975. Two matches were drawn, of which one required a second replay.
| Tie no | Home team | Score | Away team | Date | Attendance | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Derby County | 0–1 | Leeds United | 18 February 1975 | 35,298 | [23] |
| 2 | Everton | 1–2 | Fulham | 15 February 1975 | 45,233 | [15] |
| 3 | Ipswich Town | 3–2 | Aston Villa | 15 February 1975 | 31,297 | [12] |
| 4 | West Ham United | 2–1 | Queens Park Rangers | 15 February 1975 | 39,193 | [9] |
| 5 | Mansfield Town | 0–1 | Carlisle United | 15 February 1975 | ||
| 6 | Arsenal | 0–0 | Leicester City | 15 February 1975 | ||
| Replay | Leicester City | 1–1 | Arsenal | 19 February 1975 | 35,000 | [1] |
| 2nd replay | Leicester City | 0–1 | Arsenal | 24 February 1975 | 39,025 | [1] |
| 7 | Peterborough United | 1–1 | Middlesbrough | 15 February 1975 | 25,750 | [6] |
| Replay | Middlesbrough | 2–0 | Peterborough United | 18 February 1975 | 34,303 | [6] |
| 8 | Birmingham City | 2–1 | Walsall | 15 February 1975 | 45,881 | [14] |
| Leeds United | 1–1 | Ipswich Town |
|---|---|---|
| McKenzie | Johnson |
The final took place on Saturday, 3 May 1975 atWembley and ended in a victory forWest Ham United overFulham by 2–0. Both goals were scored byAlan Taylor. The attendance was 100,000.
| West Ham United | 2–0 | Fulham |
|---|---|---|
| A. Taylor | [24] |
![]() ![]() West Ham | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Fulham |
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The right to show FA Cup games were, as with Football League matches, shared between the BBC and ITV network. All games were shown in a highlights format, except the Final, which was shown live both on BBC1 & ITV. The BBC football highlights programme Match Of The Day would show up to three games and the various ITV regional network stations would cover up to one game and show highlights from other games covered elsewhere on the ITV network. No games from rounds 1 or 2 were shown. Highlights of replays would be shown on either the BBC or ITV.Third roundBBC Orient v Derby County, Liverpool v Stoke City, Southampton v West Ham UnitedITV Wycombe Wanderers v Middlesbrough (LWT), Manchester City v Newcastle United (Granada & Tyne-Tees), Wolverhampton Wanderers v Ipswich Town (ATV), Southend United v Queens Park Rangers (Anglia), Leeds United v Cardiff City (Yorkshire & HTV), Brighton & Hove Albion v Leatherhead (Southern), Derby County v Orient (Midweek replay All Regions).Fourth roundBBC Leatherhead v Leicester City, Plymouth Argyle v Everton, Middlesbrough v Sunderland, Arsenal v Coventry (Midweek replay), Wimbledon v Leeds United (Monday night replay)ITV Ipswich Town v Liverpool (Anglia & Granada), West Ham United v Swindon Town (LWT & HTV), Coventry City v Arsenal (ATV), Leeds United v Wimbledon (Yorkshire).Fifth roundBBC Peterborough United v Middlesbrough, Arsenal v Leicester City, Mansfield Town v Carlisle UnitedITV West Ham United v Queens Park Rangers (LWT), Everton v Fulham (Granada),Ipswich Town v Aston Villa (Anglia), Birmingham City v Walsall (ATV), Derby County v Leeds United (Midweek All regions), Leicester City v Arsenal (Midweek 2nd replay All regions),Sixth roundBBC Arsenal v West Ham United, Birmingham City v MiddlesbroughITV Carlisle United v Fulham (Granada, LWT & Tyne-Tees), Ipswich Town v Leeds United (Anglia & Yorkshire), Leeds United v Ipswich Town (Midweek 2nd replay All regions)Semi-FinalsBBC Ipswich Town v West Ham UnitedITV Birmingham City v Fulham (All regions).Note neither BBC or ITV covered the replays, the goals were only shown as clips for TV news reports, with commentary over dubbed later.FinalFulham v West Ham United Shown live on both BBC & ITV