1873 FA Cup Final Cup win. It was the only Cup final prior to 1893 not played at The Oval. As the previous year's FA Cup winners, Wanderers received a bye straight to the final in the 1872–73. This was in keeping with the original concept of the competition being a "challenge cup", in which the holders would qualify directly for the following season's final and teams would compete for the other place in the final and the right to challenge them for the trophy. This was the only time this rule was used. In the first round Oxford University played Crystal Palace (a
1872–73 FA Cup not needed as Queen's Park withdrew. Final: The Semi-Final team would face Wanderers, the defending champion. As the 1871–72 Cup winners, Wanderers had not played in the cup before this game. The final was played at Lillie Bridge. The attendance of 3,000 was considered low, and of those who did attend, not all stayed for the whole duration of the game. This was attributed to the Boat Race occurring later the same day. 1872–73 FA Cup The 1872–73 Football Association Challenge Cup was the second staging of the FA Cup, England's oldest national football tournament. Sixteen teams entered, one more