Spruce Up The Cup

Sir Alex Ferguson would like to see a freshening up of the FA Cup format to provide a new lease of life to football’s oldest competition, which is fast approaching a century and a half in existence.

The Reds boss says a number of alterations to the format and timing of the 140-year-old tournament would retain its prestige and place among the top honours for English club sides to win.

“They say the romance of the FA Cup is fading, but try telling that to the 9,000 Crawley supporters at Old Trafford,” Sir Alex said in his matchday programme notes ahead of Saturday’s 1-0 win over the non-league club. “The excitement and tradition [is] there all right, and long may it continue.

“It’s a fine tournament, though maybe it could do with a smartening up along with a bit of tweaking to fit into the modern football calendar. I read that the Football Assocation are concerned about a perceived decline in interest from fans and are considering various measures to reivtalise a competition we may have been taking for granted. There is no doubt that the FA Cup has suffered from the success of the European competitions, this season in particular with Wembley the venue for the Champions League final on May 28 forcing the FA Cup final to be played a fortnight earlier.

“The proposal to switch the final to a tea-time kick-off instead of the traditional 3pm start will please the broadcasters because early evening is a peak viewing slot, but I can’t see that making a fundamental difference to the popularity of the competition.

“What I do think is worth looking at is the German model of taking a month’s break from football in January and then launching the second half of the season with their Cup competition. This might mean spilling over into the summer season, but I see nothing wrong with that and playing league fixtures beyond the end of May. After all, we are playing internationals into June and we could accommodate a league extension.”

There is a balancing act between modernisation and protecting the traditions of the tournament. But Sir Alex believes success can be achieved in both areas in a tournament United have won a record 11 times.

“What I would like to see preserved is the timing of the FA Cup final to fall as the last day of the football season, with the big dat at Wembley a natural climax generating the glamour and glory associated with the Cup. I wouldn’t like to see replays abandoned in favour of penalty shoot-outs either. Think of Burton Albion and the money they were able to make from their replay with us!

“I do think the FA’s idea to seed the Premier League clubs in the early stages to help protect the quality of the tournament is a good one. And I’m sure with the resources available to the FA that they could come up with improved ways of marketing, advertising and projecting the iamge of a competition that has stood the test of time and is still capable of catching the imagination of all true lovers of the game.”