The FA Cup third round takes centre stage over the next four days with 32 ties crammed in from Friday through to Monday in what promises to be a frantic fight to progress through to the next stage.
Are giant-killings on the horizon, or will the favourites march on through? Here are 10 key stats to watch out for in the 2025-26 FA Cup third round.
Table of contents
Wrexham vs Nottingham Forest
- Wrexham have beaten higher-division sides in their last two FA Cup third-round matches and will be aiming to make it three in a row against Nottingham Forest.
Wrexham and Nottingham Forest headline Friday’s FA Cup action as the two sides meet in Wales, which is their first encounter in any competition since the 1993-94 League Cup second round.
Forest have endured a difficult Premier League campaign but claimed a vital midweek victory away to relegation rivals West Ham. They now travel to the Racecourse Ground aiming to reach the fourth round for a third consecutive season, a feat they have not achieved since 1995-97.
Wrexham, co-owned by Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, come into the tie on the back of four straight matches, which has fired the club within touching distance of the Championship play-off places. Phil Parkinson’s side will now be eyeing a Premier League scalp and can take confidence from having knocked out higher-ranked opposition in each of their last two third-round appearances.
Preston vs Wigan
- Wigan could become the first club in FA Cup history to go to penalties in the first, second, and third rounds in the same season.
Championship promotion hopefuls Preston face League One side Wigan in a first FA Cup meeting between the clubs.
Wigan have reached the third round via back-to-back penalty shoot-out victories over Hemel and Barrow, and could make history against Preston by becoming the first club to ever contest a penalty shoot-out in each of the first three rounds of the FA Cup in the same season.
Everton vs Sunderland
- Sunderland’s seven-match FA Cup losing run against same-division sides could stretch to eight against Everton.
Sunderland have been eliminated in each of their last seven FA Cup ties against teams from the same division since they overcame Southampton 1-0 in the fifth round in 2013/14, which is a run that would extend to eight with defeat against Everton.
However, the club’s former manager David Moyes doesn’t have the best record in the competition against Premier League opposition, having lost eight of his last 10 ties against top-flight teams.
Macclesfield vs Crystal Palace
- Macclesfield could become the first non-league club to knock out the FA Cup holders since Crystal Palace themselves back in 1908-09.
FA Cup holders Crystal Palace begin the defence of their trophy away to National League North side Macclesfield, who are the lowest-ranked side left in the competition.
Palace head into the match without a win in eight games in all competitions, however, it would still be a colossal shock if they failed to beat Macclesfield, who are priced at 11/1 to conjure up an almighty upset live on BBC 1 on Saturday lunchtime.
Macclesfield, who are competing in the FA Cup proper for the first time after reforming in 2020, could become the first club since Harlow Town back in 1979-80 to reach the fourth round in their debut campaign.
Funnily enough, Crystal Palace were the last non-league club to boot out the FA Cup holders when they overcame Wolves back in 1908-09.
Fulham vs Middlesbrough
- Middlesbrough’s miserable winless FA Cup run in London could be extended to 23 matches.
Middlesbrough fans will no doubt have groaned when they were picked to play Fulham in the third round. Not only is it a long journey down to London, but Boro haven’t won an FA Cup game in the capital since 1957. Since that win over Charlton, they’ve gone 22 games without a win, losing 13 of them.
Manchester City vs Exeter City
- Manchester City could equal the record for the most successive home FA Cup wins by a league club.
Another first-time FA Cup clash sees seven-time winners Manchester City host League One side Exeter City at the Etihad.
City have won their last 15 home FA Cup matches and could extend the streak to 16 with a win over the Grecians, which would match the longest home winning run in the competition, currently held by Liverpool, who racked up 16 straight at Anfield between 1939 and 1955.
Grimsby Town vs Weston-super-Mare
- Weston-super-Mare could simultaneously knock out an EFL club and reach the FA Cup fourth round for the first time in their 138-year history.
Weston-super-Mare have already made history by reaching the FA Cup third round for the first time in their history after seeing off Needham Market, Aldershot Town and Chelmsford City so far in this season’s competition.
This weekend, the Conference side can make double history against League Two Grimsby. A win would mark their first-ever victory over a Football League team and secure a maiden fourth-round appearance.
Portsmouth vs Arsenal
- Arsenal could extend their unbeaten run against Portsmouth to 23 matches in all competitions.
Portsmouth have the opportunity to conjure up a major scalp when they host the record 14-time winners Arsenal at Fratton Park.
Both the odds and history are, however, against the Championship club, who have failed to beat the Gunners in a whopping 22 games in all competitions (D8 L14), dating back to 1958. On top of that, they’ve lost each of their four FA Cup ties against the North Londoners.
Manchester United vs Brighton
- Matheus Cunha could become only the fifth Premier League player to ever score in five consecutive FA Cup appearances.
Manchester United, who face Brighton, will be hoping that the FA Cup offers them some respite following a poor run in the league, which resulted in the sacking of Ruben Amorim.
United forward Matheus Cunha has found the back of the net in each of his last four FA Cup appearances, meaning he has the chance to become only the fifth Premier League player to score in five in a row after Marc Overmars (1998-1999), Darren Bent (2012-2014), Wayne Rooney (2011-2013), and Romelu Lukaku (2014-2016 & 2017-2018).
Liverpool vs Barnsley
- If Barnsley shock Liverpool at Anfield they will become the only club to have a current three-game winning streak at Anfield.
The FA Cup could prove to be Liverpool’s clearest route to silverware this season. The eight-time winners, last victorious in 2022, are the heavy 1/5 favourites to see off League One Barnsley on Monday night.
However, in the back of their minds Liverpool fans but me a tiny bit twitchy. Barnsley have history on their side, having won their last two trips to Anfield: stunning Liverpool in the 2008 FA Cup and before that in the Premier League (1997).
If Barnsley pull off a third straight Anfield win, they’d set a new record for the longest ongoing winning run at Liverpool, surpassing Nottingham Forest and Atalanta, who are also currently on two straight wins.
