2024–25 FA Youth Cup

The 2024–25 FA Youth Cup was the 73rd edition of the competition.

The competition consisted of several rounds and was preceded by a qualifying competition, starting with two preliminary rounds which was followed by three qualifying rounds for non-League teams. The Football League teams entered the draw thereafter, with League One and League Two teams entered in the first round proper, and Premier League and Championship teams entered in the third round proper.

A record 633 clubs were accepted into the competition. Although 3 teams Hutton, Newent Town, and Thame United withdrew before the draw began, 630 competed in the competition. The current defending Champions are Manchester City who defeated Leeds United 4–0 at the City of Manchester Stadium in front of 20,000 fans.

Calendar

Qualifying rounds

Extra preliminary round

186 teams from tiers 7-10 competed in the Extra preliminary Round. 9 walkovers occurred in this round as Ardley United, Arundel, Godalming Town, Rochester United, St Blazey, Selsey, Soham Town Rangers, Sutton Athletic and West Didsbury & Chorlton all withdrew from the competition at this stage. The result is 9 total walkovers so far. The draw was released on 5 July 2024.

Preliminary round

382 teams competed in the Preliminary round with the 93 winners from the previous round along with 289 new teams. 17 walkovers occurred in this round as Baldock Town, Barnstaple Town, Bideford, Carlisle City, Crowborough Athletic, Evesham United, Flackwell Heath, Great Wakering Rovers, Hamworthy United, Holmesdale, Lancing, Mousehole, Romford, Shepton Mallet, Silsden, Stapenhill, and Wick all withdrew from the competition at this stage. As a result, we have 26 walkovers so far. The draw was released on 5 July 2024.

First Round Qualifying

43 clubs from the sixth tier National League North and National League South competed with the 191 winners from the preliminary round. Even though the 6th tier has 48 teams, Chesham United, Farnborough, Peterborough Sports, Scunthorpe United, and Welling United did not apply to compete in the FA Youth Cup this year. Bracknell Town were originally supposed to play in this round, but were disqualified after they fielded an ineligible player so their opponent Ascot United moved on in their place. No walkovers occcured during the round. This results in the same number of walkovers for the tournament 26. The draw was made on 6 September 2024.

Second Round Qualifying

23 clubs from the fifth tier National League competed with the 117 winners from the previous round. 12 teams from tier ten are left with 11 confirmed to be moving on to this round. Although the fifth tier has 24 clubs, Braintree Town did not apply to compete in the FA Youth Cup. No walkovers occcured during the round. This results in the same number of walkovers for the tournament 26. The draw was done on 20 September 2024.

Third Round Qualifying

The 70 winners from the Second Round Qualifying compete in this round with the 35 winners progressing to the First Round Proper. Four teams Coalville Town, Hackney Wick, Rising Ballers Kensington, and Wellingborough Whitworth from tier 10 are the lowest ranked teams left in the competition. Seven teams Barking, Guiseley AFC, Gosport Borough, Hackney Wick, Harpenden Town, Kingstonian, and Newcastle Town made it from the Extra Preliminary Round to this round so far. The draw was done on 4 October 2024.

Competition Proper

First Round

45 teams from League One and League Two joined the 35 winners from the previous round. Barrow, Crawley Town, and Wycombe Wanderers will not participate in this round as they did not apply to enter the competition. Coalville Town, Hackney Wick, Rising Ballers Kensington and Wellingborough Whitworth from the tenth tier are the lowest ranked teams left in the competition. Five teams, Barking, Guiseley, Hackney Wick, Merstham FC and Newcastle Town made it all the way from the Extra Preliminary Round to the First Round Proper playing 5 games to make it here. The draw was made on 18 October 2024.

Second Round

The winners from the first round would compete in this round. Rising Ballers Kensington from the tenth tier is the lowest tier team left in the tournament. Merstham FC are the only team remaining who played in the Extra-Preliminary round, winning 6 matches to get to this stage. The draw was made on November 1, 2024.

Third Round

44 teams from the EFL Championship and the Premier League join in this stage of the competition. Burgess Hill Town, Hertford Town, and Merstham from the 8th Tier are the lowest ranked teams remaining in the competition. Merstham are the only team remaining who played in the Extra-Preliminary round, winning 7 matches to get to this stage. The draw was made on 15 November 2024.

Fourth Round

The 32 winners from the previous round compete in this round. The lowest ranked team left in the competition is Merstham, from the 8th tier. Merstham are the only team remaining who played in the Extra-Preliminary round, tying an FA Youth Cup record winning 8 consecutive matches to get to this stage in the competition. The draw was made on 13 December 2024.

Fifth Round

The 16 winners from the previous round compete in this round. The lowest ranked teams in the competition are Bristol City, Derby County, Leeds United, Norwich City, Plymouth Argyle, Watford, and West Bromwich Albion from the EFL Championship in the second tier. The draw was made on 10 January 2025.

Quarter-finals

The eight winners from the previous round will compete in this round. The lowest ranked teams in the competition are Plymouth Argyle, Watford, and West Bromwich Albion from the EFL Championship in the second tier. The draw was made on 31 January 2025.