Details of the Emirates FA Cup semi-finals, to be played at Wembley Stadium connected by EE next month, have now been revealed.
Here, head of professional game relations Andy Ambler explains the process behind all the key decisions that needed to be made before the final four go head-to-head.
When and how are match dates and kick-off times decided?
Throughout the course of the competition the broadcasters pick the dates and times but, following that, there’s quite a complex process involved.
We work closely with Premier League, EFL, National League and UEFA competition fixtures. We also take into account safety concerns, guidance from the local authorities, policing and transport and travel for the fans.
There’s no doubt broadcasters prefer the evening kick-offs to give the most number of people the chance to watch the game.
How many tickets will each club get? What else happens to the remaining tickets?
The four clubs will get approximately 32,000 each. The remainder of the tickets are split between Club Wembley and commercial partners. The semi-finals, like other premium events, are included within the Club Wembley package. There are also a number of seats that are not put on sale which act as appropriate levels of segregation over the weekend.
Will the ticket prices go up this year?
No. The ticket prices are frozen from last year and start from £30 for adults. In fact they are the same as they were in 2014.
Is there anything you do to keep costs down for families?
The tickets are allocated to the clubs and then the clubs apply their standard concessionary rates to their tickets. I’m sure all four clubs have got good concessionary rates for children and we’ll see plenty of young faces in the crowd on 22 and 23 April.
How do you decide which match is shown live on BBC or BT Sport?
Ultimately the broadcasters get to pick which games they’d like to be televised. For the semi-finals, BBC had the first pick and they selected Chelsea v Tottenham on Saturday 22 April. BT Sport will be showing Arsenal v Manchester City on Sunday 23 April.
How do you decide which end of the stadium each set of fans are in?
There are a number of factors, including transport requirements and crowd flow management. However, in the case of both Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur, both London based, both previously occupied the West End of the stadium, so it came down to a coin toss. Chelsea won that coin toss and will be playing in the West End.
In the instance of the Arsenal v Manchester City, it was more geographical and transport infrastructure that decided how the end was picked. The team we expect to bring more coaches is better suited to a particular end at Wembley due to the location of onsite coach parking and as a result, Arsenal will be in the East End and Manchester City in the West.
How do you ensure tickets don’t get in the wrong hands or sold by ticket touts?
It’s a big priority that the tickets get in the hands of the genuine supporters. Tickets are sold directly by the clubs to their fan-base. Clubs supply us with a ticket-selling policy in advance, which is approved by The FA.
At the stadium there will be enhanced ticket checks outside, prior to supporters entering the turnstiles. We also operate a very robust system to detect fraudulent tickets. That should act as a big deterrent to anyone considering buying from an illegal source.
We strongly advise people not to buy tickets from touts as they are at risk of not getting into the stadium.
Will Wembley Stadium have additional security for the FA Cup semi-finals?
We allocate security staffing for the fixtures based on police intelligence, crowd risk profile and other evidence-based intelligence. The FA will work closely with the four clubs to share information and resource. We will actively invite the clubs to provide a small allocation of their own stewards on match day to assist our stadium stewarding team in facilitating the best fan experience.
Does The FA advise fans on how to get to Wembley Stadium?
We’ll supply fans of all four clubs with travel plans in advance of the weekend. Those plans will outline specific transport information including road closures, engineering work and tube line closures. The Sunday match is the same day as the London Marathon so there will be road closures around central London and these will be included in our advice.
While we would always encourage supporters to arrive via public transport, as Wembley Stadium is well served and connected by Underground and Railway, the stadium also has the on-site parking capacity coaches and minibuses.
Manchester City fans have the furthest to travel for their semi-final. Are any measures put in place to help them with their travel plans?
We’ll be advising Manchester City fans of the best ways to travel to the game. The FA works proactively with transport providers in advance of fixtures to review the transport links for supporters and collaborate on plans. We also work closely with our coach partner National Express to ensure adequate coach availability, if required.
Having that game at 3pm on a Sunday, is helpful as hopefully the City fans find that kick-off time better for returning back to Manchester on Sunday evening.
