1915 FA Cup final
football match
The 1915 FA Cup final took place on 24 April 1915 and was contested by Sheffield United and Chelsea. It was the last FA Cup final to be staged after the implementation of the Defence of the Realm Act 1914 which suspended competitive football in Britain for the duration of the First World War. The match was moved from its pre-war location of Crystal Palace in south London to Old Trafford in Manchester to avoid disruption to travel in and around London.
The match is one of the few FA Cup finals that has acquired a nickname; the "Khaki Cup Final", owing to the large number of uniformed soldiers in attendance. However, the attendance of about 50,000 was lower than previous years as a result of wartime travel restriction and the mobilisation of large numbers of young men into the armed forces.
Road to the Final
Chelsea had the easiest start in the FA Cup competition, their first round match was with Swindon Town, a Southern Football League team, but they made heavy work of it requiring a replay to defeat them and conceding three goals during the two matches. Their Cup performance improved considerably, and after defeating Arsenal (then a Second Division side) in the second round, they defeated several First Division sides who finished above them in the league table, including Everton, who later went on to win the league that season.
Sheffield United defeated Blackpool, a Second Division side, in the first round and then made steady progress until the fourth round, where they met Oldham Athletic, who finished above them in the First Division that season, and they required a replay to finally defeat them. Sheffield United met Bolton Wanderers in the semi-final and George Utley, the Blades' captain, scored a rare goal.
Pre-match build-up
The favourites to win the match were Sheffield United.
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