| 1898–99 FA Cup | |
| Country: | |
| Defending Champions: | Nottingham Forest |
| Winners: | Sheffield United |
| Second: | Derby County |
| Prev Season: | 1897–98 |
| Next Season: | 1899–1900 |
The 1898–99 FA Cup was the 28th season of the world's oldest association football competition, the Football Association Challenge Cup (more usually known as the FA Cup). The cup was won by Sheffield United, who defeated Derby County 4–1 in the final of the competition, played at Crystal Palace in London.
Matches were scheduled to be played at the stadium of the team named first on the date specified for each round, which was always a Saturday. If scores were level after 90 minutes had been played, a replay would take place at the stadium of the second-named team later the same week. If the replayed match was drawn further replays would be held at neutral venues until a winner was determined. If scores were level after 90 minutes had been played in a replay, a 30-minute period of extra time would be played.
The format of the FA Cup for the season had a preliminary round, five qualifying rounds, three proper rounds, and the semi-finals and final.
| Round | Date | |
|---|---|---|
| Preliminary round | Saturday 24 September 1898 | |
| First round qualifying | Saturday 1 October 1898 | |
| Second round qualifying | Saturday 15 October 1898 | |
| Third round qualifying | Saturday 29 October 1898 | |
| Fourth round qualifying | Saturday 19 November 1898 | |
| Fifth round qualifying | Saturday 10 December 1899 | |
| First round proper | Saturday 28 January 1899 | |
| Second round proper | Saturday 11 February 1899 | |
| Third round proper | Saturday 25 February 1899 | |
| Semi-finals | Saturday 18 March 1899 | |
| Final | Saturday 15 April 1899 |
The first round proper contained sixteen ties between 32 teams. The 18 First Division sides were given a bye to this round, as were Newton Heath, Woolwich Arsenal and Manchester City from the Second Division, and non-league Southampton. Most of the other Second Division sides were entered into the third qualifying round, with the exceptions of Barnsley, who started in the second qualifying round, and Burton Swifts, Blackpool and Loughborough who were placed in the first qualifying round. Of those sides, only Grimsby Town, Small Heath and Glossop North End qualified to the FA Cup proper. Seven non-league sides also qualified.
The matches were played on Saturday, 28 January 1899. Four matches were drawn, with the replays taking place in the following midweek fixture.
| Tie no | Home team | Score | Away team | Date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bristol City | 2–4 | Sunderland | 28 January 1899 | |
| 2 | Burnley | 2–2 | Sheffield United | 28 January 1899 | |
| Replay | Sheffield United | 2–1 | Burnley | 2 February 1899 | |
| 3 | Liverpool | 2–0 | Blackburn Rovers | 28 January 1899 | |
| 4 | Preston North End | 7–0 | Grimsby Town | 28 January 1899 | |
| 5 | Notts County | 2–0 | Kettering | 28 January 1899 | |
| 6 | Nottingham Forest | 2–1 | Aston Villa | 28 January 1899 | |
| 7 | The Wednesday | 2–2 | Stoke | 28 January 1899 | |
| Replay | Stoke | 2–0 | The Wednesday | 2 February 1899 | |
| 8 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 0–0 | Bolton Wanderers | 28 January 1899 | |
| Replay | Bolton Wanderers | 0–1 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 1 February 1899 | |
| 9 | West Bromwich Albion | 8–0 | South Shore | 28 January 1899 | |
| 10 | Everton | 3–1 | Jarrow | 28 January 1899 | |
| 11 | Small Heath | 3–2 | Manchester City | 28 January 1899 | |
| 12 | Heanor Town | 0–3 | Bury | 28 January 1899 | |
| 13 | Woolwich Arsenal | 0–6 | Derby County | 28 January 1899 | |
| 14 | New Brompton | 0–1 | Southampton | 28 January 1899 | |
| 15 | Tottenham Hotspur | 1–1 | Newton Heath | 28 January 1899 | |
| Replay | Newton Heath | 3–5 | Tottenham Hotspur | 1 February 1899 | |
| 16 | Glossop | 0–1 | Newcastle United | 28 January 1899 |
The eight Second Round matches were scheduled for Saturday, 11 February 1899, although only three games were played on this date. The other five games were played the following Saturday. There were three replays, played in the following midweek fixture.
| Tie no | Home team | Score | Away team | Date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Liverpool | 3–1 | Newcastle United | 11 February 1899 | |
| 2 | Preston North End | 2–2 | Sheffield United | 11 February 1899 | |
| Replay | Sheffield United | 2–1 | Preston North End | 16 February 1899 | |
| 3 | Stoke | 2–2 | Small Heath | 11 February 1899 | |
| Replay | Small Heath | 1–2 | Stoke | 15 February 1899 | |
| 4 | Notts County | 0–1 | Southampton | 11 February 1899 | |
| 5 | West Bromwich Albion | 2–1 | Bury | 11 February 1899 | |
| 6 | Derby County | 2–1 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 11 February 1899 | |
| 7 | Everton | 0–1 | Nottingham Forest | 11 February 1899 | |
| 8 | Tottenham Hotspur | 2–1 | Sunderland | 11 February 1899 |
The four Third Round matches were scheduled for Saturday, 25 February 1899. There were no replays.
| Tie no | Home team | Score | Away team | Date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Southampton | 1–2 | Derby County | 25 February 1899 | |
| 2 | Stoke | 4–1 | Tottenham Hotspur | 25 February 1899 | |
| 3 | Nottingham Forest | 0–1 | Sheffield United | 25 February 1899 | |
| 4 | West Bromwich Albion | 0–2 | Liverpool | 25 February 1899 |
The semi-final matches were both played on Saturday, 18 March 1899. The Sheffield United–Liverpool match went to a replay, played the following Thursday. The match was again replayed a week later, when Sheffield managed a 1–0 win. They went on to meet Derby County in the final at Crystal Palace.
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See main article: 1899 FA Cup final.
The final took place on Saturday, 15 April 1899 at Crystal Palace. Just under 74,000 supporters attended the match, a record attendance at the time. John Boag opened the scoring for Derby County after 12 minutes. Derby's lead was maintained until midway through the second half, until Sheffield struck back with three goals in ten minutes from Walter Bennett, Billy Beer and John Almond. Fred Priest scored the fourth and final goal in the eighty-ninth minute, to cap a good victory for the Yorkshire side.