FA Cup third round draw: United play Brighton, holders Crystal Palace face Macclesfield

English FA Cup holders Crystal Palace travel to sixth-tier Macclesfield in the third round next month after the draw took place on Monday.

Macclesfield, one of the four minor league clubs still participating in the FA Cup, is fourteenth in the National League North. In its previous guise as Macclesfield Town, the team reached the fourth round of the competition in 2013 before losing to Wigan.

Palace are flying high in the Premier League and are fourth in the standings.

The draw made it four Premier League matches, with the highlight being Aston Villa’s visit to Tottenham. Everton take on Sunderland, Newcastle take on Bournemouth and Manchester United host Brighton.

Premier League leaders Arsenal travel to 2008 winners Portsmouth, while Wrexham played a high-profile home game against Nottingham Forest. Liverpool hosts Barnsley, Manchester City meets third division club Exeter and Chelsea visits London rival Charlton.

The ties will be played from January 10 to 11.

FA Cup third round draw – Match schedule

• Manchester United vs Brighton

• Macclesfield v Crystal Palace

• Wolves v Shrewsbury

• Doncaster v Southampton

• Tottenham vs Aston Villa

• Port Vale v Fleetwood

• Preston v Wigan

• Ipswich v Blackpool

• Wrexham v Nottingham Forest

• Charlton at Chelsea

• Manchester City vs Exeter

• West Ham vs QPR

• Sheffield Wednesday vs Brentford

• Fulham vs Middlesbrough

• Everton vs Sunderland

• Liverpool vs Barnsley

• Burnley v Millwall

• Norwich v Walsall

• Portsmouth vs Arsenal

• Derby vs Leeds

• Swansea vs West Brom

• Salford v Swindon

• Boreham Wood vs Brackley or Burton

• Grimsby v Weston-super-Mare

• Hull v Blackburn

• Newcastle vs Bournemouth

• MK Dons vs Oxford

• Cheltenham vs Leicester

• Cambridge v Birmingham

• Bristol City vs Watford

• Stoke v Coventry

• Sheffield United v Mansfield

Published on December 9, 2025