Whatever happened to the loss of interest in the FA Cup? Surely the world’s most prestigious club competition deserves better support than what the pundits are giving at the moment.
A third round which delivered few shocks, awful TV coverage, fewer spectators going to games, and the fact that some Premiership (and indeed some Football League) teams’ decision to put out squads of both either reserve or young players have all played their part of the competition’s decline in recent years. Well, if most of the money and interest is vested in the likes of European club football and the Premiership, what is the point of the FA Cup?
The FA need to take this lack of interest seriously, and to take some necessary steps, for example:
- Clamp down on teams (yes, including the Premiership’s Big Four) who send out weakened teams to matches. Fine them heavily if they refuse to comply.
- Axe ITV from its cup coverage contract and hand it back to both Sky and the BBC. Their sports coverage throughout this season’s competition has been shocking.
- Force clubs to cut their ticket prices for cup matches.
- Abolish all sponsorship of the FA Cup and set up an public awareness campaign to restore faith in the competition.
Some sports commentators have also decided that the FA Cup isn’t worth the bother any more. What is going on here? It’s time for the ordinary football supporter to start caring about the competition once more, otherwise the decline we see right now may not be reversed in the long term.