Why the FA Cup semis are played at Wembley as Palace and Forest book trips

With the FA Cup quarter-finals taking place this weekend, four clubs will book their places at Wembley for the semi-finals.

Wembley has hosted the last four every year since 2008, with stadiums like Old Trafford and Villa Park standing in during the famous ground’s rebuild at the turn of the century.

But why is Wembley Stadium not saved for the competition’s finale?

The answer is a rather boring one: money. In fact, it was decided back in 2003 – during the new stadium’s construction – that semi-finals would be staged under the famous arch to help pay for the new ground.

Wembley first hosted the semi-finals in the early 1990s, including derbies between Arsenal & Tottenham Hotspur and Sheffield United & Sheffield Wednesday.

The last season before Wembley was knocked down (1999/00) also saw two semi-finals in the capital, with Aston Villa and Chelsea prevailing before the Blues repeated the trick in the final.

Now something of an annual tradition, Wembley hosts a pair of semi-finals across one weekend each season, though it is not without its opposition.

Firstly, football purists will argue that Wembley should be saved for the showpiece event of the final, while there are occasionally geographical factors to consider, particularly when two northern sides are paired together.

This year’s draw meant that there would only be one London representative in the last four, with Crystal Palace taking that berth after seeing off Fulham in the only all-London quarter-final tie.

It seems unlikely things will change any time soon, given the semi-finals have been staged at Wembley for 18 seasons and counting, especially with the ground filling up with passionate supporters no matter who’s involved.

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