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FA Cup
2003–04
Region England England
Flag of Wales Wales
Defending champions Arsenal
Champions Manchester United
(11th title)
Runner-up Millwall
Top goal scorer Garry Barnes
(8 goals)
 ← 2002–03
2004–05 → 

The 2003–04 FA Cup was the 123rd staging of England and the world's oldest football competition, the FA Cup. The competition began on 23 August 2003, with the lowest-ranked of the entrants competing in the Extra Preliminary round. In the Third Round, the clubs from the Premiership and Division One competed in the competition for the first time.

The semi-finals were staged at neutral venues and, like the final, would not be replayed in the event of a draw. The competition culminated with the cup final at the Millennium Stadium, Cardiff for a fourth year in a row, since Wembley Stadium was still in the rebuilding process. The cup was won by Manchester United for a record 11th time, with a 3–0 victory over Millwall from Division One.

The appearance in the Cup Final by Millwall, a Level 2 team, marked the first time in 12 years that a team outside Level 1 of the English football pyramid appeared in the final game.

Calendar[]

Round Date (weekend of) Matches Clubs Prize money
Extra Preliminary Round Saturday 23 August 2003 73 661 → 588 £500
Preliminary Round Saturday 30 August 2003 182 588 → 406 £1,000
First Round Qualifying Saturday 20 September 2003 124 406 → 282 £2,250
Second Round Qualifying Saturday 27 September 2003 84 282 → 198 £3,750
Third Round Qualifying Saturday 11 October 2003 42 198 → 156 £5,000
Fourth Round Qualifying Saturday 25 October 2003 32 156 → 124 £10,000
First Round Proper Saturday 8 November 2003 40 124 → 84 £16,000
Second Round Proper Saturday 6 December 2003 20 84 → 64 £24,000
Third Round Proper Saturday 3 January 2004 32 64 → 32 £40,000
Fourth Round Proper Saturday 24 January 2004 16 32 → 16 £60,000
Fifth Round Proper Saturday 14 February 2004 8 16 → 8 £120,000
Sixth Round Proper Saturday 6 March 2004 4 8 → 4 £300,000
Semi-finals Saturday 3 April 2004 2 4 → 2 £900,000
Final Saturday 22 May 2004 1 2 → 1 £1,000,000

First round proper[]

For the qualifying rounds, see 2003–04 FA Cup Qualifying Rounds.

This round is the first in which Football League teams from League One and League Two compete with non-league teams. Luton's Adrian Forbes and Sheffield Wednesday's Adam Proudlock netted hat tricks. Shildon AFC, of the Arngrove Northern League (level 9 on the football league pyramid), were the lowest ranked team left in the competition in the first round.

  • Ties were played over the weekend of 8 November 2003.
Tie no Home team Score Away team
1 Lincoln City 3 – 1 Brighton & Hove Albion
2 Peterborough United 2 – 0 Hereford United
3 Oldham Athletic 3 – 0 Carlisle United
4 Cheltenham Town 3 – 1 Hull City
5 Yeovil Town 4 – 1 Wrexham
6 Macclesfield Town 3 – 0 Boston United
7 Grays Athletic 1 – 2 Aldershot Town
8 Scarborough 1 – 0 Doncaster Rovers
9 Barnet 2 – 2 Stalybridge Celtic
replay Stalybridge Celtic 0 – 2 Barnet
10 Blackpool 4 – 0 Boreham Wood
11 Wycombe Wanderers 4 – 1 Swindon Town
12 Lancaster City 1 – 2 Cambridge United
13 Woking 3 – 1 Histon
14 AFC Bournemouth 1 – 0 Bristol Rovers
15 Stevenage Borough 2 – 1 Stockport County
16 Grantham Town 1 – 2 Leyton Orient
17 Thurrock 1 – 1 Luton Town
replay Luton Town 3 – 1 Thurrock
18 Northampton Town 3 – 2 Plymouth Argyle
19 Tranmere Rovers 3 – 2 Chesterfield
20 Hornchurch 2 – 0 Darlington
21 Scunthorpe United 2 – 1 Shrewsbury Town
22 Torquay United 1 – 2 Burton Albion
23 Accrington Stanley 1 – 0 Huddersfield Town
24 Grimsby Town 1 – 0 QPR
25 Notts County 7 – 2 Shildon
26 Brentford 7 – 1 Gainsborough Trinity
27 Kidderminster Harriers 2 – 1 Northwich Victoria
28 Southend United 1 – 1 Canvey Island
replay Canvey Island 2 – 3 Southend United
29 York City 1 – 2 Barnsley
30 Port Vale 2 – 2 Ford United
replay Ford United 1 – 2 Port Vale
31 Mansfield Town 6 – 0 Bishop's Stortford
32 Sheffield Wednesday 4 – 0 Salisbury City
33 Farnborough Town 0 – 1 Weston-super-Mare
34 Chester City 0 – 1 Gravesend & Northfleet
35 Telford United 3 – 2 Crawley Town
36 Colchester United 1 – 0 Oxford United
37 Bradford Park Avenue 2 – 5 Bristol City
38 Bury 1 – 2 Rochdale
39 Swansea City 3 – 0 Rushden & Diamonds
40 Hartlepool United 4 – 0 Whitby Town

Second round proper[]

Ties were played over the weekend of 6 December 2003. Mansfield's Liam Lawrence showed how interested Championship and premiership clubs were with him by netting a hat trick.

Tie no Home team Score Away team
1 Northampton Town 4 – 1 Weston-super-Mare
2 Rochdale 0 – 2 Luton Town
3 Colchester United 1 – 0 Aldershot Town
4 Macclesfield Town 1 – 1 Cambridge United
replay Cambridge United 2 – 2 Macclesfield Town
Macclesfield Town won 4-2 on penalties
5 Peterborough United 3 – 2 Grimsby Town
6 Bristol City 0 – 0 Barnsley
replay Barnsley 2 – 1 Bristol City
7 Oldham Athletic 2 – 5 Blackpool
8 Burton Albion 0 – 1 Hartlepool United
9 Gravesend & Northfleet 1 – 2 Notts County
10 Telford United 3 – 0 Brentford
11 Woking 0 – 3 Kidderminster Harriers
12 Hornchurch 0 – 1 Tranmere Rovers
13 Yeovil Town 5 – 1 Barnet
14 A F C Bournemouth 1 – 1 Accrington Stanley
replay Accrington Stanley 0 – 0 A F C Bournemouth
Accrington Stanley won 5-3 on penalties
15 Cheltenham Town 3 – 1 Leyton Orient
16 Port Vale 0 – 1 Scarborough
17 Wycombe Wanderers 1 – 1 Mansfield Town
replay Mansfield Town 3 – 2 Wycombe Wanderers
18 Southend United 3 – 0 Lincoln City
19 Scunthorpe United 2 – 2 Sheffield Wednesday
replay Sheffield Wednesday 0 – 0 Scunthorpe United
Scunthorpe United won 3-1 on penalties
20 Swansea City 2 – 1 Stevenage Borough

Third round proper[]

This round marks the first time Championship and Premier League (top-flight) teams play. Matches were played on the weekend of Saturday, 3 January 2004, with replays on 13 January and 14 January.

Tie no Home team Score Away team
1 Preston North End 3 – 3 Reading
replay Reading 1 – 2 Preston North End
2 Southampton 0 – 3 Newcastle United
3 Watford 2 – 2 Chelsea
replay Chelsea 4 – 0 Watford
4 Yeovil Town 0 – 2 Liverpool
5 Gillingham 3 – 2 Charlton Athletic
6 Nottingham Forest 1 – 0 West Bromwich Albion
7 Aston Villa 1 – 2 Manchester United
8 Crewe Alexandra 0 – 1 Telford United
9 Middlesbrough 2 – 1 Notts County
10 Sunderland 1 – 0 Hartlepool United
11 Everton 3 – 1 Norwich City
12 Ipswich Town 3 – 0 Derby County
13 Tranmere Rovers 1 – 1 Bolton Wanderers
replay Bolton Wanderers 1 – 2 Tranmere Rovers
14 Tottenham Hotspur 3 – 0 Crystal Palace
15 Manchester City 2 – 2 Leicester City
replay Leicester City 1 – 3 Manchester City
16 Kidderminster Harriers 1–1 Wolverhampton Wanderers
replay Wolverhampton Wanderers 2–0 Kidderminster Harriers
17 Fulham 2–1 Cheltenham Town
18 Barnsley 0–0 Scunthorpe United
replay Scunthorpe United 2–0 Barnsley
19 Northampton Town 1–1 Rotherham United
replay Rotherham United 1 – 2 Northampton Town
20 Coventry City 2–1 Peterborough United
21 Portsmouth 2–1 Blackpool
22 Bradford City 1–2 Luton Town
23 Millwall 2–1 Walsall
24 Wimbledon 1–1 Stoke City
replay Stoke City 0–1 Wimbledon
25 Southend United 1–1 Scarborough
replay Scarborough 1–0 Southend United
26 Mansfield Town 0–2 Burnley
27 Cardiff City 0–1 Sheffield United
28 Leeds United 1–4 Arsenal
29 Wigan Athletic 1–2 West Ham United
30 Birmingham City 4–0 Blackburn Rovers
31 Swansea City 2–1 Macclesfield Town
32 Accrington Stanley 0–0 Colchester United
replay Colchester United 2–1 Accrington Stanley

Fourth round proper[]

Ties played during the weekend of 24 January 2004, with replays on 3 February and 4 February.

Tie no Home team Score Away team
1 Burnley 3–1 Gillingham
2 Liverpool 2–1 Newcastle United
3 Nottingham Forest 0–3 Sheffield United
4 Wolverhampton Wanderers 1–3 West Ham United
5 Luton Town 0–1 Tranmere Rovers
6 Everton 1–1 Fulham
replay Fulham 2–1 Everton
7 Scarborough 0–1 Chelsea
8 Ipswich Town 1–2 Sunderland
9 Manchester City 1–1 Tottenham Hotspur
replay Tottenham Hotspur 3–4 Manchester City
10 Northampton Town 0–3 Manchester United
11 Coventry City 1–1 Colchester United
replay Colchester United 3–1 Coventry City
12 Portsmouth 2–1 Scunthorpe United
13 Arsenal 4–1 Middlesbrough
14 Birmingham City 1–0 Wimbledon
15 Telford United 0–2 Millwall
16 Swansea City 2–1 Preston North End

The match between Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City was particularly notable. Tottenham led the match 3–0 at half-time but Manchester City turned the match around in the second half to win 4–3, with Jon Macken scoring the winning goal in the 90th minute. This was despite Manchester City having one less player on the pitch during the second half after Joey Barton was red carded during the half-time interval.

Fifth round proper[]

  • Matches played weekend of 14 and 15 February 2004
  • Three replays played week commencing 22 and 25 February 2004.
  • Four non-Premiership sides (including a Division Two side) progressed to the quarter-finals.
Tie no Home team Score Away team Attendance
1 Liverpool 1–1 Portsmouth 34,669
replay Portsmouth 1–0 Liverpool 19,529
2 Sunderland 1–1 Birmingham City 24,966
replay Birmingham City 0–2 Sunderland 25,645
3 Sheffield United 1–0 Colchester United 17,074
4 Tranmere Rovers 2–1 Swansea City 12,215
5 Fulham 0–0 West Ham United 14,705
replay West Ham United 0–3 Fulham 27,934
6 Manchester United 4–2 Manchester City 67,228
7 Millwall 1–0 Burnley 10,420
8 Arsenal 2–1 Chelsea 38,136

Quarter-finals[]

  • Matches played on the weekend of Saturday, 6 March 2004.
  • There was one replay between Tranmere and Millwall, played on Tuesday 16 March.
  • Two Division One sides progressed to the semi-finals, while another was eliminated at this stage. In addition, a Division Two side reached the quarter-finals and were only eliminated after a replay.
2004-03-06
12:30
Manchester United 2 – 1 Fulham Old Trafford, Manchester
Attendance: 67,614
Referee: Rob Styles
van Nistelrooy Goal 25'62' Report Malbranque Goal 23' (pen.)

2004-03-06
18:00
Portsmouth 1 – 5 Arsenal Fratton Park, Portsmouth
Attendance: 20,137
Referee: Jeff Winter
Sheringham Goal 90' Report Henry Goal 25'50'
Ljungberg Goal 43'57'
Touré Goal 45'

2004-03-07
13:00
Millwall 0 – 0 Tranmere The Den, Bermondsey, London
Attendance: 16,404
Referee: Neale Barry
Report

2004-03-07
16:05
Sunderland 1 – 0 Sheffield United Stadium of Light, Sunderland
Attendance: 37,115
Referee: Steve Dunn
Tommy Smith Goal 15' Report

Replay[]

2004-03-16
19:45
Tranmere 1 – 2 Millwall Prenton Park, Tranmere, Birkenhead
Attendance: 15,510
Referee: Uriah Rennie
Gary Jones Goal 41' Report Cahill Goal 11'
Harris Goal 15'

Semi-finals[]

  • Matches played on the weekend of Saturday, 3 April 2004.
  • Two teams from Division 1 featured in the semi-finals (Millwall and Sunderland) who faced each other. The other tie was an all-Premiership affair between Manchester United and Arsenal, held at Villa Park.
  • Both games were played at neutral venues.
2004-04-03
12:00
Arsenal 0 – 1 Manchester United Villa Park, Birmingham
Attendance: 39,939
Referee: Graham Barber
Report Scholes Goal 32'

2004-04-04
13:00
Sunderland 0 – 1 Millwall Old Trafford, Manchester
Attendance: 56,112
Referee: Paul Durkin
Report Cahill Goal 26'

Final[]

Main article: 2004 FA Cup Final

Manchester United won the game and lifted the trophy for the 11th time in their history (a competition record) with a 3-0 victory over a Millwall side who were the first team from outside the top flight to reach the FA Cup final in 12 years.

22 May 2004
15:00 BST
Manchester United 3 – 0 Millwall Millennium Stadium, Cardiff
Attendance: 71,350
Referee: Jeff Winter (County Durham)
Ronaldo Goal 43'
van Nistelrooy Goal 65' (pen.)81'
(Report)

Media coverage[]

In the United Kingdom, the BBC were the free to air broadcasters for the third consecutive season while Sky Sports were the subscription broadcasters for the sixteenth consecutive season.

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