All the furore coming out of the EFL clubs is pure political posturing, the bottom line being money (as Birch has said so outright), and it’s all part of the bigger picture, namely the unresolved funding deal between EPL and EFL. The fact that some are using some kind of rose tinted romance of the cup to further this argument is just that - a means of pushing the financial argument.
Giant killing isn't being abolished, only replays. In fact it could be argued the chances of a giant killing increase slightly in a one-off game with penalties, if needed. Some evidence of that already in the FA Trophy and Vase, where replays have also been abolished in recent years.
For every once in a blue moon memory-making FA Cup replay, there are dozens if not hundreds of instantly forgettable replays played in front of low crowds. There is nothing instrinsically appealing about a replay, but there is plenty of appeal about David taking on Goliath, and, every now and then, actually slaying the giant. I’d have quite happily come away from, say, the Dell and Vicarage Road having won a one-off tie on penalties. Or even all those low key ties we’ve ended up losing in a replay over the years…
So this’ll all quickly blow over, when (but only when) the EFL and its clubs are happy with the financial aspects. Only the luddites will still be harping on it for years, if not decades, but at least it’ll be a diversion for them from moaning about, say, the name of the Champions League after all these years, lol
Anyway, the FA has this morning punched a hole in some of the bleatings about lack of consultation and the financial implications with this statement:
“We have listened to the concerns expressed over the last 24 hours, and would like to outline the approval process which was undertaken for the 2024-25 professional game football calendar.
We have been discussing the calendar for the 2024-25 season with the Premier League and EFL for well over a year.
Removing Emirates FA Cup replays was discussed in the early meetings and all parties accepted that they could not continue. The discussions then focused on how to make all of our competitions stronger, despite having fewer dates available and wanting to maintain player welfare.
The changes to the Emirates FA Cup achieve this by returning it to a weekend competition on every round, and ensuring that we have exclusive broadcast slots in an increasingly congested calendar.
To clarify, we have also increased the number of Emirates FA Cup matches that will be broadcast in the early rounds, which will lead to additional guaranteed broadcast revenue for EFL and National League teams. Additionally, we review the prize money annually for the competition, together with representatives from the EFL and Premier League and will do the same for the 2024-25 season.
The calendar for next season was approved last month by the Professional Game Board, which consists of four EFL representatives and four Premier League representatives and then by the FA Board, which includes Premier League, EFL, National Game and grassroots representation. This is the process we undergo every year to approve the calendar.
We understand the concerns expressed over the last 24 hours, and we will be sharing more details with clubs very shortly to explain the additional revenue opportunities in the early rounds.
We will keep this under review as the new calendar begins to ensure that EFL and National League clubs do not lose out.”
EDIT - so any claims the FA didn’t consult with the EFL seem wide of the mark. Instead, any lack of consultation appears to have been between the EFL and its member clubs. So no surprise MP was one of the first out of the blocks yesterday!