FA Youth Cup fixtures & history: Qualifying rounds underway in 2025/26

The FA Youth Cup is the most prestigious domestic youth football competition in the world and was initiated in 1952 as the great Manchester United team – later christened the ‘Busby Babes' – won five consecutive titles under the tutelage of Jimmy Murphy, assistant to the legendary Sir Matt Busby.

It has since continually proved an excellent grounding for future Premier League and Football League players. It is a fine barometer of the quality of a club's youth ranks.

FA Youth Cup 2025/26 dates

Preliminary Round: Monday 1 September 2025

First Round Qualifying: Monday 15 September 2025

Second Round Qualifying: Monday 29 September 2025

Third Round Qualifying: Monday 13 October 2025

First Round Proper: Saturday 1 November 2025

Second Round Proper: Saturday 22 November 2025

Third Round Proper: Saturday 13 December 2025

Fourth Round Proper: Saturday 24 January 2026

Fifth Round Proper: Saturday 21 February 2026

Sixth Round Proper: Saturday 14 March 2026

Semi-Final: Saturday 11 April 2026

The Final: Saturday 9 May 2026

FA Youth Cup FAQs

Who are the current holders of the FA Youth Cup?

Aston Villa are the defending champions after defeating Manchester City in the FA Youth Cup final 2025 at Villa Park.

Who has won the most FA Youth Cups?

Manchester United are the most successful club in FA Youth Cup history, winning the competition a record 11 times. Chelsea are the next best, with nine titles to their name.

Who can play in FA Youth Cup fixtures?

Players must have been born on or after 1 September 2007 but before 1 September 2010. This effectively means they must have turned 15 before the season began but must not have yet reached their 18th birthday. If they turn 18 during the season, they are still eligible to play.

Where are FA Youth Cup fixtures played?

Many clubs will host their FA Youth Cup matches at their primary stadiums, but this isn't always the case in the early rounds for the Premier League and Championship sides.

For groundhoppers, though, this can present an equally enticing opportunity to tick off some more stadia. Manchester United, for example, play most of their Youth Cup games at Old Trafford but, on occasion, play them at their regular Academy stadium, Leigh Sports Village. Across town, United's rivals Manchester City will play their games at their dedicated Academy Stadium, also home to Man City Women.

Generally, Academy players and staff are keen to play these games at their club's main stadium, but scheduling issues can make this difficult in the busy month of December, when there are so many fixtures.

List of FA Youth Cup winners

List of FA Youth Cup finals

Until the 2018/19 seasons, all FA Youth Cup finals were played over two legs, with an aggregate score determining the winner. Since the 2018/19 season, all FA Youth Cup finals have been single matches.