Replays abolished in qualifying rounds as FA Cup prize fund is reduced

The draws for the extra preliminary and preliminary rounds will be released on Tuesday, August 18, with accepted local clubs confirmed as Diss, Dereham, Gorleston, Kirkley & Pakefield, Norwich United, Swaffham, Thetford, Wisbech and Wroxham.

Lowestoft will not be involved until the first qualifying round and King’s Lynn are exempt until the fourth qualifying round following their promotion to the National League - with Norwich City not involved until the third round proper.

The prize fund will see extra preliminary round winners claim £1,125 and £375 given to the losers. Preliminary round victors will earn £1,444 and the beaten side £481, while first qualifying round success will bring £2,250 and defeat £750 - the same amount extra preliminary round winners earned in the past two seasons.

The eventual winner of the FA Cup at Wembley will claim £1.8million, halved from £3.6m.

An FA statement explained: “In order to assist in easing pressure on the football schedule, there will be no replays for the 2020-21 season in the qualifying competition. The schedule for the competition proper will be released in due course.

“After two seasons of record levels of prize funds, the Emirates FA Cup prize fund has returned back in line with 2017-18 levels due to the financial impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.”

Extra preliminary round ties are due to be played on Tuesday, September 1 and the first and third qualifying rounds are also scheduled for midweek slots.

It’s also been confirmed that the early stages of the FA Trophy, FA Vase and FA Youth Cup will be held in September.

An FA statement also concluded: “With regards to the 2019-20 Trophy and Vase campaign, which remain at the quarter-final stage, we are currently exploring options with the relevant parties as we are still seeking to complete the competitions, providing it is feasible to do so.”