FA Cup first round draw
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The latest edition of football’s oldest tournament gets underway in earnest this evening with the draw for the FA Cup first-round proper. The qualification process has already been underway for quite some time as the denizens of the non-league pyramid jostled for the right to face football league opposition. League One and League Two clubs enter the tournament at this stage, with Championship and Premier League heavyweights introduced in round three.
There will be a number of non-league outfits in the first round proper this season, the lowest-ranked of which is Tadley Calleva, who currently compete at step nine and upset Aldershot Town last time out to reach this stage. Elsewhere, Sholing, who counts Chelsea star Levi Colwill among their investors, and Berkhamstead will hope to book a meeting with EFL opposition. AFC Rushden & Diamonds and Salisbury complete the non-league contingent.
Among their potential opponents are Leicester, who just ten short years ago were Premier League champions, and Plymouth Argyle. London clubs Leyton Orient, Wimbledon and Bromley are also in the draw. Follow theFA Cup first round draw as it happens LIVE below with Standard Sport’s dedicated blog!
FA Cup first round draw latest updates
Live updates
Ball numbers 31-45
31. Oxford United
32. Peterborough United
33. Plymouth Argyle
34. Port Vale
35. Reading
36. Rochdale
37. Rotherham United
38. Salford City
39. Sheffield Wednesday
40. Shrewsbury Town
41. Stevenage
42. Stockport County
43. Swindon Town
44. Tranmere Rovers
45. Walsall
Ball numbers 16-30
16. Doncaster Rovers
17. Exeter City
18. Fleetwood Town
19. Gillingham
20. Grimsby Town
21. Huddersfield Town
22. Leicester City
23. Leyton Orient
24. Luton Town
25. Mansfield Town
26. Milton Keynes Dons
27. Newport County
28. Northampton Town
29. Notts County
30. Oldham Athletic
Ball numbers 1-15
1. Accrington Stanley
2. AFC Wimbledon
3. Barnet
4. Barnsley
5. Blackpool
6. Bradford City
7. Bristol Rovers
8. Bromley
9. Burton Albion
10. Cambridge United
11. Cheltenham Town
12. Chesterfield
13. Colchester United
14. Crawley Town
15. Crewe Alexandra
When are first round matches played?
Matches in the FA Cup first round will be held across and around the weekend of November 7/8, 2026.
How to watch the FA Cup first round draw
TV channel: The FA Cup draw will be broadcast live in the UK on TNT Sports 1, with coverage beginning at 6:30pm.
Live stream: TNT Sports subscribers can watch it live online via the HBO Max app, while TNT Sports are also streaming it on their official YouTube channel.
Good afternoon
Hello, and welcome to Standard Sport’s LIVE coverage of the FA Cup first-round draw!
Plenty of non-league hopefuls will be keen to book a dream away day to an EFL side here. But how will the draw shake out?
Stick with us right here for all the latest as we wait to find out!
The draw will get underway at about 6.30pm BST.
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