The FA Cup, also known as the Football Association Challenge Cup, is a men's domestic English football competition that takes place every year. It is the world's oldest national football competition, having begun in the 1871–72 season. It is organized by The Football Association and is named after them (The FA). It has been called The Emirates FA Cup since 2015, after its title sponsor. A women's event, the Women's FA Cup, is also held concurrently.
The competition is open to any eligible club in the English football league system down to Level 10 – that is, all 92 professional clubs in the Premier League (level 1) and the English Football League (levels 2–4), as well as several hundred non-League teams in steps 1–6 of the National League System (levels 5 to 10). In 2011–12, a record 763 clubs competed. The event is made up of 12 rounds that are picked at random, followed by semi-finals and the final. The minimum number of games required to win varies depending on which round a team enters the competition – the minimum number of games required to win varies depending on which round a team enters the competition – entrants are not seeded, but a system of byes based on league level ensures that higher ranked teams enter in later rounds.
The Qualifying Competition is comprised of the first six rounds, from which 32 clubs advance to the first round of the Competition Proper, where they will face the first of 48 professional teams from Leagues One and Two. The Premier League and Championship clubs are the final entries entering the draw for the Third Round Proper. Only one non-League team has ever advanced to the quarterfinals in the modern period, and no team below Level 2 has ever advanced to the final. As a result, the smaller teams that advance the furthest are given additional attention, especially if they pull off an unusual 'giant-killing' victory.
The FA Cup trophy, of which there have been two designs and five real cups, is awarded to the winners; the most recent is a 2014 replica of the second design, which was inaugurated in 1911. The winners will also be eligible for the UEFA Europa League and the FA Community Shield. Arsenal is the most successful club in the competition, having won fourteen trophies, while Arsène Wenger is the most successful manager in the competition's history, having led Arsenal to seven finals.
The current holders are Leicester City, who defeated Chelsea 1–0 in 2021 final.
