The FA Cup has been one of the most iconic football tournaments in the world since its inception in 1871.
It is the oldest national football competition in the world and is open to all eligible clubs down to Level nine of the English football league system with Level 10 clubs acting as stand-ins. In fact, in 2011-12, a record 763 clubs participated in the tournament.
Although the prize money on offer might not be overly lucrative for the Premier League outfits, it undoubtedly makes a difference to those lower down the football pyramid and a giant-killing cup run can be definitive.
GOAL takes a look and how much clubs stand to earn right from the first round winners and losers to the champion.
What is the 2022-23 FA Cup prize money?
The prize for winning the 2022-23 FA Cup final alone is £2 million, with the runners-up receiving £1 million. However, the overall cumulative prize money depends on how many rounds a team progresses through.
While the prize money for the competition has not varied significantly, after the Covid-19 pandemic, the winnings went down to £3.4 million. However, the Football Association has increased the prize pool for 2022-23, which is always a welcome relief for the clubs that are lower down the football hierarchy.
A full breakdown of the FA Cup prize money for 2022-23 can be found in the table below.
Round | No. of teams | Prize money |
---|---|---|
Extra preliminary round winners | 208 | £1,125 |
Extra preliminary round losers | 208 | £375 |
Preliminary round winners | 136 | £1,444 |
Preliminary round losers | 136 | £481 |
First round qualifying winners | 112 | £2,250 |
First round qualifying losers | 112 | £750 |
Second round qualifying winners | 80 | £3,375 |
Second round qualifying losers | 80 | £1,125 |
Third round qualifying winners | 40 | £5,625 |
Third round qualifying losers | 40 | £1,875 |
Fourth round qualifying winners | 32 | £9,375 |
Fourth round qualifying losers | 32 | £3,125 |
First round proper winners | 40 | £41,000 |
Second round proper winners | 20 | £67,000 |
Third round proper winners | 32 | £105,000 |
Fourth round proper winners | 16 | £120,000 |
Fifth round proper winners | 8 | £225,000 |
Quarter-final winners | 4 | £450,000 |
Semi-final winners | 2 | £1,000,000 |
Semi-final losers | 2 | £500,000 |
Final runners-up | 1 | £1,000,000 |
Final winners | 1 | £2,000,000 |
The Premier League teams enter the competition in the third round and this season the prize money has shot up by £23,000 to £105,000 if they win in this round.
Whoever wins this year's final will earn around £3.7m from prize money alone.
What was the FA Cup prize money in 2021-22?
Getty ImagesThere has been a marginal increase in the prize money from the last season.
While the prize money has remained the same in the preliminary and qualifying rounds, it has increased from the first round proper.
Liverpool earned £1.8m in the 2021-22 season for beating Chelsea in penalties and the Blues settled for £900,000 after finishing as runners-up.