2024-25 FA Cup · The Final
2025 FA Cup Final: Crystal Palace 1-0 Manchester City
Nobody who watched this final agrees on when the only goal was scored, and the winners were not allowed to keep the European place the trophy is supposed to carry.
Crystal Palace won the FA Cup for the first time, at the third attempt and in the club's 120th year. The FA's own report, the club's own report and every newspaper record put the goal in a different minute.
Saturday 17 May 2025 · Wembley Stadium
What you will not find elsewhere
Three official accounts of this final, and three different minutes for the only goal
The standard record, Sky Sports and ESPN all time Eberechi Eze's winner at sixteen minutes. The Football Association's own published match report says he swept in Daniel Munoz's cross in just the 15th minute. Crystal Palace's own match report carries both figures on the same page: its scoreline strip reads Eze 16', and its live timeline logs GOAL - EZE against the figure 15. The club's timeline is the tell, because it opens with the entry 0: Palace kick-off. A clock that begins at zero is counting minutes elapsed, and fifteen minutes elapsed is the sixteenth minute of play. Read that way the FA and everybody else are describing the same instant in two different counting systems, which is a more useful thing to publish than a silent choice between them. We record 16 as the headline figure because three independent outlets agree on it, and we keep the FA's 15 on the page rather than rounding it away.[1][5][7]
Six of the seven timings we could cross-check disagree, and every gap is exactly one minute
We took every timed event that both Crystal Palace's own match report and the standard line-up table record, which is the goal and all six substitutions, and compared them. Six of the seven disagree. Guehi off at 60 or 61. Mateta at 77 or 78. Wharton at 86 or 87. Savinho at 75 or 76. Marmoush at 75 or 76. The goal at 15 or 16. Only Ilkay Gundogan's introduction, at 88, is agreed by both. Every one of the six gaps is a single minute, and every one of them runs the same way, with the club's figure the lower. That is not carelessness in either source. It is two conventions for reading the same clock, applied consistently, and it is why no two accounts of this final quite line up.[5][7]
The FA's own schedule pays 2,000,000 pounds, not the 1,800,000 still in circulation
The Football Association publishes a one-page prize fund schedule for every season of the competition. The 2024-25 document, the one that governed this final, lists Final winners (1) 2,000,000 pounds and Final runners-up (1) 1,000,000 pounds, and the 2023-24 schedule gives identical figures. The pair still repeated in secondary coverage, 1,800,000 pounds and 900,000, is the 2021-22 schedule; it was superseded before this final was played. The same one-page document contains a second thing nobody frames. It names a losers' payment for every qualifying round and for the first, second and third rounds proper, and again for the semi-final, but none at all for the fourth round proper, the fifth round proper or the quarter-final. A club knocked out in the quarter-final of the FA Cup is paid nothing for that tie.[3][4][13]
What the cup run actually paid, added up from the governing body's own table
Crystal Palace entered at the third round and won six ties. Read line by line off the FA's 2024-25 schedule, that run paid 115,000 pounds for the third round, 120,000 for the fourth, 225,000 for the fifth, 450,000 for the quarter-final, 1,000,000 for the semi-final and 2,000,000 for the final: 3,910,000 pounds. Manchester City took the same number of rounds through the same schedule and banked 2,910,000. The whole financial difference between winning and losing an FA Cup final, on the governing body's own numbers, is 1,000,000 pounds, or roughly a quarter of what the winning run is worth in total. The FA publishes the table; it does not publish the total, because the table is a list of single rounds.[3]
Why nobody agrees when the goal was scored
The FA's match report says the goal came in just the 15th minute. Almost everyone else says the sixteenth. The explanation is on Crystal Palace's own page, whose timeline opens 0: Palace kick-off. That is a clock counting elapsed minutes, so fifteen elapsed is the sixteenth minute of play. The same one-minute gap, always in the same direction, shows up across the goal and every substitution the two accounts both record.[1][5]
The footage
The match report
Crystal Palace won the FA Cup at Wembley on Saturday 17 May 2025, beating Manchester City by a single goal in the 144th final of the competition. It was the first major trophy in the club's history. The FA's own report put it in the plainest terms available: the Eagles were in their 120th year, and had lost finals in 1990 and 2016, before they finally lifted football's oldest trophy.[1][7]
The opening quarter of an hour pointed the other way entirely. After nine minutes City had completed 60 passes and Palace had completed six, Erling Haaland had already drawn a reaction save out of Dean Henderson, and both Josko Gvardiol and Manuel Akanji had gone close from corners. Then Palace attacked for the first time. Jean-Philippe Mateta fed Daniel Munoz on the right, Munoz drove a low cross into the six-yard area, and Eberechi Eze swept it first time into the corner.[1][5]
The scoreline never moved again, and both of the decisions that shaped it went Palace's way. Just after the twenty-minute mark Henderson raced from his line and palmed a long Gvardiol ball away from Haaland with his hand outside the penalty area. Jarred Gillett, the video assistant referee, checked the incident and declined to recommend a dismissal, on the reading that the ball had been diverted away from goal and that Haaland therefore did not have a clear goalscoring opportunity. A goalkeeper handling outside his area is not automatically a sending off, and a video assistant may only intervene on a dismissal it judges to be clear. The FA's own match report of this final does not mention the incident at all.[11][7][1]
The second decision came on 36 minutes, when Tyrick Mitchell slid in on Bernardo Silva and Stuart Attwell pointed to the spot. Haaland, City's regular taker, picked the ball up and handed it to Omar Marmoush, signed from Eintracht Frankfurt in the January window. Marmoush stuttered in his run-up, Henderson sprang to his right and saved it, and the FA's report records that the noise this produced from the Palace end was perhaps bigger than the one that had greeted the goal.[1][7]
Palace thought they had a second on 58 minutes, when a long Chris Richards throw broke to Munoz, deflected off Ismaila Sarr, wrong-footed Stefan Ortega and was turned into an empty net. VAR found Sarr offside in the build-up. Three minutes later Palace lost their captain, Marc Guehi going off after taking a ball to the head, and finished the final without him.[1][7][5]
City made the chances and did not take them. Nico O'Reilly hesitated with the goal open on 74 minutes. Claudio Echeverri, a surprise inclusion in the squad, shot straight at Henderson on 83 and had two more sights of goal deep in the ten minutes of added time. Kevin De Bruyne, playing his last FA Cup final for the club before leaving that summer, skewed a late chance wide from the edge of the box. Daniel Munoz was named player of the match.[1][7]
What the trophy was worth has two answers, and only one of them is a number. The Football Association's own published prize fund schedule for the season pays the final winners 2,000,000 pounds, double what it pays the runners-up. It is also supposed to carry the English place in the UEFA Europa League. Palace did not get that. UEFA's rules on multi-club ownership caught John Textor's holdings in both Palace and Olympique Lyonnais, Lyon had finished higher in their own league, and Lyon kept the place. Palace appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, lost, and entered the Conference League at the play-off round instead. Winning the cup still took the club into a major European competition for the first time in its history, but not the one the cup is supposed to hand over.[3][12][7]
For Manchester City it was a third consecutive FA Cup final and a second successive defeat in one, which made them the tenth club to lose finals back to back. Having finished third in the league and gone out of both the EFL Cup and the Champions League, they ended the season without a major trophy for the first time since 2016-17. Palace went the other way. They were back at Wembley in August for the Community Shield, drew with Liverpool and won the shootout, Henderson saving twice more.[7][8]
How the match unfolded
- 6'Erling Haaland stretches out a boot to divert a clipped Kevin De Bruyne cross goalwards and Dean Henderson gets down to make what the FA's report calls a superb reaction save.[1][5]
- 9'City have completed 60 passes. Crystal Palace have completed six. Josko Gvardiol and Manuel Akanji both go close from corners.[1]
- 16'With their first attack of the match Palace lead. Jean-Philippe Mateta feeds Daniel Munoz on the right and Eberechi Eze sweeps the low cross first time into the corner. The FA's own report times this at the 15th minute.[1][7][10][5]
- 23'Henderson races out and palms a long Gvardiol ball away from Haaland with his hand outside the penalty area. Jarred Gillett, the video assistant referee, checks the incident and declines to recommend a red card. Henderson stays on.[7][11][5]
- 36'Tyrick Mitchell slides in on Bernardo Silva and Stuart Attwell awards a penalty. Haaland, City's regular taker, hands the ball to Omar Marmoush. Marmoush stutters in his run-up and Henderson springs to his right to save it.[1][7][5]
- 42'Henderson makes a sharp diving save from Jeremy Doku's curling shot. The rebound falls to De Bruyne, who blazes it over the bar.[1][5]
- 45'Half-time. Palace lead by the only goal, having had a fraction of the ball.[5][1]
- 58'Palace think they have a second. A long Chris Richards throw causes chaos, Munoz's shot deflects off Ismaila Sarr, wrong-foots Stefan Ortega and Munoz taps into an empty net. VAR rules Sarr offside.[1][7][5]
- 61'Marc Guehi comes off after taking a ball to the head, with Jefferson Lerma sent on in his place. Palace finish the final without their captain.[7][5]
- 74'De Bruyne slips Nico O'Reilly clear inside the area. O'Reilly hesitates over the shot and Palace defenders smother him.[1][7]
- 83'Claudio Echeverri, a substitute, has a clear sight of goal from another De Bruyne pass and shoots straight at Henderson. Wikipedia times this at the 81st minute.[1][7]
- 95'Deep into ten minutes of added time Echeverri has two more chances, one saved by Henderson and one blocked, before Attwell ends the match and Crystal Palace win the FA Cup at the third attempt.[7][5]
Match facts
- Date
- Saturday 17 May 2025
- Venue
- Wembley Stadium, London
- Attendance
- 84,163The figure recorded by the standard reference works and by the Transfermarkt match record. No governing-body or club document we could reach prints an attendance for this final: the FA's own match report, Crystal Palace's own match report, Sky Sports and ESPN all omit it.[7][9]
- Half-time
- 1-0
- Competition
- 2024-25 FA Cup
Where they played
Both sides as they lined up. Choose any player to read what they did in this final.
Select a shirt for that player's note.
Route to the final
Crystal Palace
- Third round: Stockport County (h) won 1-0
- Fourth round: Doncaster Rovers (a) won 2-0
- Fifth round: Millwall (h) won 3-1
- Quarter-final: Fulham (a) won 3-0
- Semi-final: Aston Villa (Wembley) won 3-0
Manchester City
- Third round: Salford City (h) won 8-0
- Fourth round: Leyton Orient (a) won 2-1
- Fifth round: Plymouth Argyle (h) won 3-1
- Quarter-final: Bournemouth (a) won 2-1
- Semi-final: Nottingham Forest (Wembley) won 2-0
Line-ups
Crystal Palace · 3-4-2-1
- Dean Henderson Goalkeeper. Saved Marmoush's penalty and stayed on the pitch after handling outside his area
- Chris Richards Right of the back three. His long throw created the goal VAR disallowed
- Maxence Lacroix Centre of the back three
- Marc Guehi Captain. Off after taking a ball to the head
- Daniel Munoz Right wing-back. Crossed for the winner and was named player of the match
- Adam Wharton Central midfield. Blocked a De Bruyne shot and played on before being substituted
- Daichi Kamada Central midfield. Recalled to the side for the final
- Tyrick Mitchell Left wing-back. Conceded the penalty for a sliding challenge on Bernardo Silva
- Ismaila Sarr Ruled offside in the build-up to the goal that was chalked off
- Eberechi Eze Scored the only goal of the final with Palace's first attack
- Jean-Philippe Mateta Released Munoz for the assist
Manchester City · 4-2-3-1
- Stefan Ortega Goalkeeper, as in the two previous finals
- Manuel Akanji Right back. Headed narrowly over from an early corner
- Ruben Dias Centre back
- Josko Gvardiol Centre back. His long ball led to the Henderson handball
- Nico O'Reilly Left back. Hesitated with the goal open late on
- Bernardo Silva Brought down by Mitchell for the penalty
- Kevin De Bruyne Captain, playing his last FA Cup final for the club
- Savinho Right of the three behind the striker
- Omar Marmoush Took the penalty in place of Haaland and had it saved
- Jeremy Doku Forced a diving save from Henderson before the interval
- Erling Haaland The regular penalty taker, who handed the ball to Marmoush
Trivia and detail
- Stuart Attwell had already refereed Palace once in this same cup run. Crystal Palace's own announcement of his appointment records that the third-round win over Stockport County at Selhurst Park was his 18th match involving the Eagles, which makes the final his 19th.[6]
- Attwell had been at the two previous finals in other roles: fourth official in 2021, when Leicester City beat Chelsea, and video assistant referee in 2020. He became the youngest referee in Premier League history at the age of 25 and spent three weeks in 2010 officiating in the Japanese J League on an exchange between the English and Japanese associations.[6]
- Michael Salisbury, the support video assistant here, had been reserve assistant referee for the 2016 final in which Palace lost to Manchester United. Assistant VAR Darren Cann has officiated more Premier League matches than any other official in the competition's history.[6]
- Joel Ward was an unused substitute and the only player left at the club from the side beaten in the 2016 final.[7]
- Two of Palace's substitutes had FA Cup final history of their own. Eddie Nketiah won the 2020 final with Arsenal, and Will Hughes was a losing finalist against this same Manchester City side with Watford in 2019.[7]
- Palace's five ties on the way to the final produced an aggregate of 12-1, and they did not concede a goal after the fifth round, keeping clean sheets against Fulham, Aston Villa and Manchester City.[7]
- Manchester City went into the final chasing an eighth FA Cup, which would have drawn them level with Chelsea, Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur. The defeat left them on seven.[1]
- Abide with Me, the traditional pre-match hymn, was sung by Sinead Ashiokai, with the national anthem performed by Siena MBC and the Massed Bands of His Majesty's Royal Marines in support.[7]
- Jean-Philippe Mateta, who made the goal, had been stretchered off nine minutes into the fifth-round tie at Millwall after a collision that needed 25 stitches. He started the final.[7]
How well do you know the 2025 final?
Five questions. Every answer is sourced from the material on this page.
-
Who scored the only goal of the 2025 FA Cup final?
-
Which Manchester City player took the penalty that Dean Henderson saved?
-
What does the FA's own published prize fund schedule pay the winners of this final?
-
Which European competition did Crystal Palace end up entering after UEFA's multi-club ownership ruling?
-
What minute does the Football Association's own match report give for the goal?
What is not settled
Honesty matters more than tidiness. These details are contested or unrecorded, and we have not guessed at them:
- The minute of the only goal is genuinely contested. The FA's official match report says the 15th minute. Crystal Palace's own live timeline logs it at 15 while the club's own scoreline strip says 16. Wikipedia, Sky Sports and ESPN say 16. We publish 16 and keep 15 on the page.
- The penalty is worse. Crystal Palace's own prose puts it in the 33rd minute and its live log at 34. The FA's report says only that it came 12 minutes before half time, which implies the 33rd. Wikipedia and the press give 36. We publish 36 because it has independent agreement, and we do not claim the conflict is resolved.
- The Henderson handball is placed at 23 minutes by Wikipedia and at 24 by Sky Sports. No governing-body document we could reach times it, and the FA's own match report does not mention the incident at all.
- Echeverri's saved chance is timed at 83 minutes by the FA's report and at 81 by Wikipedia.
- Adam Wharton's substitution is given as 87 by Wikipedia's line-up table and as 86 by Wikipedia's own prose and by Crystal Palace.
- Attendance is the weakest field on this page. No governing-body or club document we could reach prints a figure. 84,163 appears in the standard reference works and in the Transfermarkt match record, which is why it carries two citations rather than an official one.
- The date of the Court of Arbitration for Sport decision is reported variously in August 2025, with the hearing on the 8th and the outcome reported on the 11th and the 12th. We give the month only.
- Whether Dean Henderson should have been sent off is a matter of opinion, not fact. The video assistant referee declined to recommend a dismissal; pundits including Ian Wright argued it was a clear one. Recorded as contested, not settled.
- No footage has been verified for this final yet, so the television shows no signal rather than an unchecked embed.
How we know
Every claim on this page is tied to a numbered source below. These are the contemporary records behind it, each one fetched and matched word for word before publication rather than taken on trust:
- The FA official match report, 17 May 2025 · The Football Association
- The FA, 29 April 2025, match officials announcement · The Football Association
- One-page prize fund schedule, season 2024-25 · The Football Association
- One-page prize fund schedule, season 2023-24 · The Football Association
Where a primary record and a modern account disagree, we show both rather than choosing the tidier number.
Sources
- Crystal Palace win historic first Emirates FA Cup · The Football Association
- The match officials for all of our 2025 FA competition finals have been appointed · The Football Association
- The Emirates FA Cup Season 2024-25 Prize Fund Payments · The Football Association
- The Emirates FA Cup Season 2023-24 Prize Fund Payments · The Football Association
- Report and Highlights: Crystal Palace win the 2025 FA Cup · Crystal Palace FC
- Match Officials announced for 2024/25 FA Cup Final · Crystal Palace FC
- 2025 FA Cup final · Wikipedia
- 2025 FA Community Shield · Wikipedia
- Crystal Palace v Manchester City, FA Cup final match report · Transfermarkt
- Crystal Palace 1-0 Manchester City: Eberechi Eze scores winner as Palace lift their first ever trophy · Sky Sports
- Dean Henderson handball: How did the Crystal Palace goalkeeper escape a red card in the FA Cup final? · Sky Sports
- Crystal Palace's appeal to play in Europa League rejected by CAS · Premier League
- FA Cup prize money: How much do winning teams earn? · Goal