The 1873–74 Football Association Challenge Cup was the third staging of the
FA Cup,
England's oldest
football tournament. Twenty-eight teams entered, twelve more than the previous season, although six of the twenty-eight never played a match.
Format
First round: The 28 teams would play. The winners would move on.
Second round: The remaining 14 teams would play. The winner would move on.
Third round: 6 teams, with
Swifts getting a bye, would play.
Semi-final: The 4 teams would play.
Final: The two semi-final teams would face each other. The winner would be crowned champion
^Only FA Cup match to be decided by coin toss; Sheffield called correctly. Collett, Mike (2003). The Complete Record of The FA Cup. p. 537.
ISBN1-899807-19-5.
^Bell's Life in London and Sporting Chronicle - Saturday 10 January 1874