Arsenal face old foes! Premier League leaders in store for eye-catching clash as holders Crystal Palace, Man Utd and Liverpool find out FA Cup third round ties

Premier League leaders Arsenal will travel to Championship side Portsmouth in round three of the FA Cup, while holders Crystal Palace head to non-league outfit Macclesfield. English giants Manchester City and Liverpool host League One teams Exeter and Barnsley respectively and Manchester United take on Brighton in an all-Premier League affair.

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  FA Cup third round ball numbers

  Before the draw was made on Monday evening, FA Cup holders Crystal Palace were given the number 13 ball, while Premier League leaders Arsenal were 2 and 2024 winners Manchester United were 23. National League South side Weston-super-Mare (49) are into the third round for the first time in their entire 138-year history, while Macclesfield (45) and Boreham Wood (51) are the other two non-league teams to reach the third round of the competition. Finally, Brackley Town (58) can join them as they host Burton Albion in the final second round tie on Monday night.

  1. AFC Bournemouth

  2. Arsenal

  3. Aston Villa

  4. Birmingham City

  5. Blackburn Rovers

  6. Brentford

  7. Brighton & Hove Albion

  8. Bristol City

  9. Burnley

  10. Charlton Athletic

  11. Chelsea

  12. Coventry City

  13. Crystal Palace

  14. Derby County

  15. Everton

  16. Fulham

  17. Hull City

  18. Ipswich Town

  19. Leeds United

  20. Leicester City

  21. Liverpool

  22. Manchester City

  23. Manchester United

  24. Middlesbrough

  25. Millwall

  26. Newcastle United

  27. Norwich City

  28. Nottingham Forest

  29. Oxford United

  30. Portsmouth

  31. Preston North End

  32. Queens Park Rangers

  33. Sheffield United

  34. Sheffield Wednesday

  35. Southampton

  36. Stoke City

  37. Sunderland

  38. Swansea City

  39. Tottenham Hotspur

  40. Watford

  41. West Bromwich Albion

  42. West Ham United

  43. Wolverhampton Wanderers

  44. Wrexham

  45. Macclesfield

  46. Grimsby Town

  47. Shrewsbury Town

  48. Swindon Town

  49. Weston Super Mare

  50. Barnsley

  51. Boreham Wood

  52. Milton Keynes Dons

  53. Wigan Athletic

  54. Fleetwood Town

  55. Salford City

  56. Mansfield Town

  57. Cambridge United

  58. Brackley Town or Burton Albion

  59. Blackpool

  60. Walsall

  61. Exeter City

  62. Cheltenham Town

  63. Doncaster Rovers

  64. Port Vale

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  FA Cup third round draw in full

  In the draw, there are four all Premier League ties, with Tottenham hosting Aston Villa, Everton entertaining Sunderland, Bournemouth travelling to Newcastle United and Brighton making the trip to Old Trafford. As mentioned above, former Premier League stalwart Portsmouth get to host Arsenal, a side they played many times earlier this century. Elsewhere, there could be a non-league battle if Brackley beat League One Burton, with the winner facing National League outfit Boreham Wood. 

  The draw is as follows, with the Premier League teams in bold.

  Wolverhampton Wanderers v Shrewsbury Town

  Doncaster Rovers v Southampton

  Tottenham Hotspur v Aston Villa

  Port Vale v Fleetwood Town

  Preston North End v Wigan Athletic

  Ipswich Town v Blackpool

  Wrexham v Nottingham Forest

  Charlton Athletic v Chelsea

  Manchester City v Exeter City

  West Ham United v Queens Park Rangers

  Sheffield Wednesday v Brentford

  Fulham v Middlesbrough

  Everton v Sunderland

  Liverpool v Barnsley

  Burnley v Millwall

  Norwich City v Walsall

  Portsmouth v Arsenal

  Derby County v Leeds United

  Swansea City v West Bromwich Albion

  Salford City v Swindon Town

  Boreham Wood v Brackley Town or Burton Albion

  Grimsby Town v Weston-super-Mare

  Hull City v Blackburn Rovers

  Newcastle United v Bournemouth

  MK Dons v Oxford United

  Cheltenham Town v Leicester City

  Cambridge United v Birmingham City

  Bristol City v Watford

  Stoke City v Coventry City

  Macclesfield v Crystal Palace

  Manchester United v Brighton

  Sheffield United v Mansfield Town

• Pundits react to FA Cup draw

  Former England team-mates Joe Cole and Peter Crouch did the honours at the third round draw, and now both have given their take on what lies ahead.

  The former winger Cole said on TNT Sports: "Charlton v Chelsea is a good draw. For clubs like Chelsea and all the top clubs, you want a home draw, you don't want to be travelling too far in January. It's a derby, it's great for Charlton, a good London derby."

  And ex-striker Crouch added: "Newcastle v Bournemouth will be a good one. Liverpool as well, I played in one against Barnsley and I think they knocked us out. We played Havant & Waterlooville and then we lost to Barnsley at Anfield."

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  When will the third round FA Cup ties take place?

  The third round fixtures are scheduled to be held between January 9-12, 2026, adding to English teams' busy schedules over the festive period and the new year. 

  Incidentally, Ally McCoist added: "Tottenham against Aston Villa is a brilliant tie, that is the one that stands out more than anything. Charlton v Chelsea a London derby, but there are some great ties. Everton v Sunderland's a big one, Sunderland going well and so are Everton."