After 465 matches and 2,445 goals, a record 514 clubs have been whittled down to two. On SundayManchester Unitedand Chelsea will face each other in the Women’s FA Cup final for a second time.
Chelsea won1-0 in 2023to deny United in what was their maiden FA Cup final appearance, something Marc Skinner’s side avenged last season by beating the Blues in the semi-finals to limit Emma Hayes’ final season trophy haul to one. United went on tobeat Tottenham 4-0 in the finalto secure their first major trophy following promotion from the Championship. Now they have a chance to demonstrate exactly how far they have come, as they bid to retain their crown against a domestically unbeaten Chelsea looking to land a treble.
More than 85,000 tickets have been sold for the showdown at Wembley, 10 years on from the first time the national stadium hosted the final. The hope is that the numbers through the turnstiles actually breach the 80,000 mark for the first time, having teetered just below that for the past two years. NewChelseaminority owner, Alexis Ohanian, is expected to be in attendance with his wife, the 23-time grand slam champion Serena Williams, while Olly Murs will perform before kick-off. Increasingly a star-studded occasion, the Women’s FA Cup final continues to be a boundary-pusher, acting as an indicator of the potential in the women’s game for mainstream attention.
The last time Sonia Bompastor stepped on to the Wembley pitch was in 2012, when she lined up for France in the semi-finals of the Olympics against Japan in front of 61,482 spectators, a match the French lost 2-1 to miss out on a chance to return to the stadium for the final. Now she is back pitchside hoping to end her first season as Chelsea manager ingloriously dominant style.
It is these sorts of occasions that persuaded Bompastor to manage in England after a lengthy career at eight-time Champions League winners Lyon, first as a player and later as the manager. “The fact you can play in front of thousands of people at a historic stadium and win one of the most famous trophies in England, the FA Cup, is something that potentially only happens a few times in your life,” she says, adding that winning the domestic treble would make this a “really good season” but “not a perfect one because we missed one trophy”.Defeat by Barcelonain the Champions League semi-finals still weighs heavily.
“I will be really proud for sure, really proud of my players, my staff, but this is a final,” adds Bompastor. “We play Man United, a team which is used to playing in this final now and they are a really strong team. They haven’t conceded many goals and I think we need to be reminded of that as well. This final will be 50-50.”
Bompastor’s attempts to dull the perception that Chelsea are favourites to win will not get far. The Women’s Super League champions have won 13 of their last 15 games against United across all competitions and are heading into their eighth FA Cup final, of which they have won five. The gap is closing, though, with United having scored 18 goals and conceded only once on the way to Wembley.
“We’re rebels,” United’s manager Skinner says. “I’m a rebel, my nature is rebellious. It’s about not accepting that because they have the best resources, they will be the best team on every occasion. When you set yourself up for that challenge, you know you will have to go through hell to get the victory. When you are prepared for that then you can do something special. I believe in our quality to do that.”
Skinner adds that United will have to “structurally manage the game and be in it consistently” to prevail. “To beat Chelsea in a final would be another step for us,” he says. “It’s a big team, a big game and there’s no doubt it will be a tight game.”
Skinner laughs when asked about the new £20m investment his rivals have received from Ohanian. “Do you know what I was thinking? I was thinking that Chelsea need a bit more money and more investment because they haven’t quite got enough,” he says. “Joking aside, I’ve said this before but I’m not a green-eyed monster. You would be envious of that budget, of course you would, but the investment probably adds more scrutiny to Sonia Bompastor because if you don’t deliver the Champions League … the challenge becomes harder in my opinion.
“I do echo what Sonia said: it’s great that they want to be the frontrunners in terms of showing how we should invest in the women’s game. I don’t know how that money is going to be invested but it’s great the interest is there. I genuinely mean that, coming from someone who has been in the women’s game for so long. We have to find a way to beat that. That’s my job. But I’m sure you’ll agree, it’s fantastic for the game and hopefully more people can do that.”
The respect for Chelsea also extends to the pitch but, as Skinner makes clear, that will not hold United back on Sunday. “They have achieved something incredible this season. But there is no fear.”