The 2024 FA Cup final takes place on Saturday, May 25 at 3 p.m. local time at Wembley Stadium in London.
Manchester City, the newly crowned Premier League champions and holders of the competition, once again face off with arch-rivals Manchester United. Pep Guardiola's men beat the Red Devils in the 2023 final 2-1 thanks to a brace from Ilkay Gundogan.
Erik ten Hag oversaw United's worst-ever Premier League finish in the 2023/24 campaign as they ended up eighth in the table and subsequently failed to qualify for any European competition next season.
There is one final chance at playing European football in the 2024/25 season, but it would come at the expense of Chelsea and Newcastle United's fortunes, so they will likely be cheering on Man City this week.
The Sporting News takes a look at how a United FA Cup final win could shake things up.
MORE: Are Pep Guardiola's Man City the best Premier League team ever?
Are Chelsea, Newcastle in Europe?
Chelsea finished the Premier League season in sixth place in the Premier League table, one place ahead of Newcastle United. Provisionally, that means the Blues qualify for next season's UEFA Europa League, with Newcastle earning a place in the Conference League.
However, the result of the FA Cup final could change matters.
How Man City vs. Man United FA Cup final affects Premier League teams qualifying for Europe
The winners of the FA Cup claim an automatic place in the following season's Europa League — one of just two spots in the competition given to English sides. Given the way the Premier League season played out, that means Chelsea and Newcastle's places in Europe next season are under threat, depending on the result at Wembley this week.
What happens if Man City win the FA Cup?
In short, nothing changes. As City have qualified for next season's UEFA Champions League, they would give up the invitation to play in the Europa League that winning the FA Cup would give them. That would mean the two Europa League places would go to the highest-ranked teams in the Premier League that did not qualify for the Champions League, i.e. Tottenham and Chelsea, who finished fifth and sixth. Newcastle, who came seventh in the league, would qualify for the Conference League.
What happens if Man United win the FA Cup?
This is where things would change. United finished eighth in the league, outside the qualification places for European competition. That means that, if they win the FA Cup, they would earn a place in next season's Europa League.
Because only two English sides can qualify for that tournament, they would be joined by Tottenham, who finished fifth in the league. Chelsea would then drop into the Conference League, and Newcastle would miss out on Europe altogether.
Which Premier League teams have qualified for Europe?
As of May 19, the final day of the Premier League season, these are the English teams occupying the qualifying spots for European competitions in 2024/25.
Champions League: Manchester City, Arsenal, Liverpool, Aston Villa
Europa League: Tottenham Hotspur, Chelsea (if Man City win FA Cup final)
Conference League: Chelsea, Newcastle (if Man City win FA Cup final)
Final Premier League 2023/24 table
| Pos | Team | Points | Matches Played |
Goals Scored |
Goal Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Manchester City | 91 | 38 | 96 | +62 |
| 2. | Arsenal | 89 | 38 | 91 | +62 |
| 3. | Liverpool | 82 | 38 | 86 | +45 |
| 4. | Aston Villa | 68 | 38 | 76 | +15 |
| 5. | Tottenham Hotspur | 66 | 38 | 74 | +13 |
| 6. | Chelsea | 63 | 38 | 77 | +14 |
| 7. | Newcastle United | 60 | 38 | 85 | +23 |
| 8. | Manchester United | 60 | 38 | 57 | -1 |
| 9. | West Ham | 52 | 38 | 60 | -14 |
| 10. | Crystal Palace | 49 | 38 | 57 | -1 |
| 11. | Brighton | 48 | 38 | 55 | -7 |
| 12. | Bournemouth | 48 | 38 | 54 | -13 |
| 13. | Fulham | 47 | 38 | 55 | -6 |
| 14. | Wolves | 46 | 38 | 50 | -15 |
| 15. | Everton* | 40 | 38 | 40 | -11 |
| 16. | Brentford | 39 | 38 | 56 | -9 |
| 17. | Nottingham Forest** | 32 | 38 | 49 | -18 |
| 18. | Luton Town (R) | 26 | 38 | 52 | -33 |
| 19. | Burnley (R) | 24 | 38 | 41 | -37 |
| 20. | Sheffield United (R) | 16 | 38 | 35 | -69 |
*Deducted 10 points for breach of profit and sustainability rules. Punishment was reduced to six points on appeal but were then deducted a further two points for another breach on April 8.
**Deducted four points for breach of profit and sustainability rules on Mar. 18.