FA Cup odds

The FA Cup is the oldest football competition in the world and gives some of the smallest teams a chance of upsetting the odds and becoming ‘giant-killers’.

Teams from ten tiers of English football compete in the cup which was first held in 1871 and the breadth of teams involved means that clubs of all standards compete.

The ‘magic of the cup’ is often spoken about and the dreams of amateur clubs across the land have come to fruition in the past; Chasetown, who play in the eighth tier of the English football pyramid, made it to the third round in 2007/8.

The third round of the FA Cup is when the Premier League teams enter the competition and punters attempt to work out which bets to strike as they seek an upset.

Wigan Athletic won the 2013 FA Cup odds

Arguably the most famous of surprises came in 1972 when lowly Hereford United beat Newcastle in the third round.

Played at Hereford’s home ground, Edgar Street, the home side were losing one nil until Ronnie Radford scored one of the FA Cup’s most memorable goals.

Radford unleashed a piledriver from 30 yards which sailed into the roof of the net and the home side went on to win the tie after extra time.

More recently, other FA Cup shocks include Barnsley’s 2007/8 beating of Liverpool at Anfield and Luton Town’s victory over Norwich in 2012/13.

Man Utd have won the FA Cup odds 11 times

The FA Cup odds are often dominated by the big teams in England and it is easy to see why.

Manchester United have the most wins in the FA Cup and their odds are always at or near the top of the betting.

With 11 FA Cup wins, the Red Devils have dominated the competition although they haven’t lifted the famous trophy since 2004 when they overcame Millwall.

Arsenal are not far behind as they have won 10 FA Cups, whilst their rivals Tottenham are the next most successful club with eight wins to their name.

Although Liverpool have dominated the League Cup over the years, they have not had as much success in the FA Cup.

The Anfield side are currently level with Chelsea and Aston Villa with seven wins apiece.

Arsenal have won the FA Cup odds 10 times

Man Utd also, perhaps unsurprisingly, have made the most appearance in the final with 18, but fans of Leicester City don’t have the fondest memories of playing FA Cup finals at Wembley; they have lost on all four occasions.

Wigan Athletic made history with their win last season as it was the first time the club had lifted the trophy.

They defeated Man City one nil although their season ended on a sour note as they were also relegated from the Premier League.

The last team to win the trophy from outside the top league was West Ham who beat Tottenham in 1980.

The 2007/8 competition looked like it might head the same way with three of the four teams contesting the semi-finals residing in the Championship.

However it was Portsmouth, the only Premier League team, who went on to win the FA Cup Final.