FA Cup ‘to be moved to midweek and replays scrapped’ in shake-up of football calendar

FA Cup replays from the third round onwards could become a thing of the past as Premier League clubs plan a radical shake-up of the football calendar. 

The competition could also be moved to midweek as top-flight clubs explore options to have televised matches on Saturday and Sundays. 

The move is part of a broader plan to free-up time for a mid-winter break, according to the Daily Mail. 

Much of the time required for the break would come in January, the time when clubs from the Premier League join the competition in the third round. 

There were changes to last season’s competition as the traditional 'sixth round was renamed the quarter-final and replays from this round were cancelled.

Matches were spread right across the weekend, with games played on Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday. 

But this looks likely to end as the erosion of the FA Cup's position as the pre-eminent club knockout competition in the world continues.