Between the big Premier League clubs that advanced and the lower-division minnows that have survived so far — Kidderminster Harriers and Boreham Wood are the two lowest-ranked teams still dancing — the 2022 FA Cup fourth-round draw has a compelling schedule of matches.
The fourth-round draw (Round of 32) took place before the third round even concluded on Sunday, Jan. 9. It happened in the immediate lead-up to the Nottingham Forest vs. Arsenal match and the day before Manchester United vs. Aston Villa closed out the third-round slate.
The 16 knockout matches of the FA Cup fourth round will be staged on the weekend of Feb. 4-6. Matches that end in a draw after 90 minutes will head straight to extra time and penalty kicks after England's Football Association scrapped replays due to COVID-related fixture congestion.
MORE: FA Cup prize money breakdown in 2022
There are no conditions to the FA Cup draw: Any team can land any of the others, no matter the tier. The host of each matchup is also randomly drawn.
FA Cup 4th Round draw results
Sporting News tracked the 4th Round draw as it happened, noting the matchups below with home teams listed first. Times and dates will be assigned in the near future.
Lower-division teams are noted in parentheses: CH = Championship (second tier); L1 = League One (third tier); L2 = League Two (fourth tier); NL = National League (fifth tier), NLNS = National League North/South (sixth tier).
| Date | Match | Time (ET) | Stream |
| Fri-Mon, Feb. 4-7 | Crystal Palace vs. Hartlepool United (L2) | TBD | ESPN+ |
| Fri-Mon, Feb. 4-7 | AFC Bournemouth vs. Boreham Wood (NL) | TBD | ESPN+ |
| Fri-Mon, Feb. 4-7 | Huddersfield Town (CH) vs. Barnsley (CH) | TBD | ESPN+ |
| Fri-Mon, Feb. 4-7 | Peterborough (CH) vs. QPR (CH) | TBD | ESPN+ |
| Fri-Mon, Feb. 4-7 | Cambridge United (L1) vs. Luton Town (CH) | TBD | ESPN+ |
| Fri-Mon, Feb. 4-7 | Southampton vs. Coventry City (CH) | TBD | ESPN+ |
| Fri-Mon, Feb. 4-7 | Chelsea vs. Plymouth Argyle (L1) | TBD | ESPN+ |
| Fri-Mon, Feb. 4-7 | Everton vs. Brentford | TBD | ESPN+ |
| Fri-Mon, Feb. 4-7 | Kidderminster Harriers (NLNS) vs. West Ham | TBD | ESPN+ |
| Fri-Mon, Feb. 4-7 | Manchester United vs. Middlesbrough (CH) | TBD | ESPN+ |
| Fri-Mon, Feb. 4-7 | Tottenham Hotspur vs. Brighton & Hove Albion | TBD | ESPN+ |
| Fri-Mon, Feb. 4-7 | Liverpool vs. Cardiff City (CH) | TBD | ESPN+ |
| Fri-Mon, Feb. 4-7 | Stoke City (CH) vs. Wigan Athletic (L1) | TBD | ESPN+ |
| Fri-Mon, Feb. 4-7 | Nottingham Forest (CH) vs. Leicester City | TBD | ESPN+ |
| Fri-Mon, Feb. 4-7 | Manchester City vs. Fulham (CH) | TBD | ESPN+ |
| Fri-Mon, Feb. 4-7 | Wolverhampton Wanderers vs. Norwich City | TBD | ESPN+ |
We're LIVE for the #EmiratesFACup fourth round draw 🏆 https://t.co/hcdUGdw2ie
— Emirates FA Cup (@EmiratesFACup) January 9, 2022
Which teams have qualified for the FA Cup 4th Round?
The Premier League will boast 14 of the 32 participants in the fourth round. Here's how they break down:
- Premier League (first tier): 14 clubs
- Championship (second tier): 12 clubs
- League One (third tier): 3 clubs
- League Two (fourth tier): 1 club (Hartlepool United)
- National League (fifth tier): 1 club (Boreham Wood)
- National League North (sixth tier): 1 club (Kidderminster)
The complete list of clubs that have survived through the third round includes 16 former FA Cup winners. These are the teams that were drawn against one another in the fourth round:
| Club | Division | Tier | FA Cup titles (last) |
| Barnsley | Championship | 2nd | 1 (1912) |
| Boreham Wood | National League | 5th | — |
| Bournemouth | Championship | 2nd | — |
| Brentford | Premier League | 1st | — |
| Brighton & Hove Albion | Premier League | 1st | — |
| Cambridge United | League One | 3rd | — |
| Cardiff City | Championship | 2nd | 1 (1927) |
| Chelsea | Premier League | 1st | 8 (2018) |
| Coventry | Championship | 2nd | 1 (1987) |
| Crystal Palace | Premier League | 1st | — |
| Everton | Premier League | 1st | 5 (1995) |
| Fulham FC | Championship | 2nd | — |
| Hartlepool United | League Two | 4th | — |
| Huddersfield Town | Championship | 2nd | 1 (1922) |
| Kidderminster Harriers | National League North | 6th | — |
| Leicester City | Premier League | 1st | 1 (2021) |
| Liverpool | Premier League | 1st | 7 (2006) |
| Luton Town | Championship | 2nd | — |
| Manchester City | Premier League | 1st | 6 (2019) |
| Manchester United | Premier League | 1st | 12 (2016) |
| Middlesbrough | Championship | 2nd | — |
| Norwich City | Premier League | 1st | — |
| Nottingham Forest | Championship | 2nd | 2 (1959) |
| Peterborough United | Championship | 2nd | — |
| Plymouth Argyle | League One | 3rd | — |
| Queen's Park Rangers | Championship | 2nd | — |
| Southampton | Premier League | 1st | 1 (1976) |
| Stoke City | Championship | 2nd | — |
| Tottenham Hotspur | Premier League | 1st | 8 (1991) |
| Wigan Athletic | League One | 3rd | 1 (2013) |
| West Ham | Premier League | 1st | 3 (1980) |
| Wolverhampton | Premier League | 1st | 4 (1960) |
When are the FA Cup 4th round matches scheduled?
The fourth-round matches will be played over the weekend of Feb. 4-7, with matches potentially slotted on the Friday (Feb. 4) or the Monday (Feb. 7) depending on available television windows.
Every month will see at least one round of FA Cup matches played, except for March — when two rounds will be played (Round of 16 and quarterfinals).
- Fourth round: Friday-Monday, Feb. 4-7
- Round of 16 (fifth round): Wednesday, March 2
- Quarterfinals: Saturday-Sunday, March 19-20
- Semifinals: Saturday, April 16
- Final: Saturday, May 14
When was the FA Cup 4th round draw?
- Date: Sunday, Jan. 9, 2022
- Time: 11:50 a.m. ET
- TV channel: None
- Stream: ESPN+, YouTube
In addition to every match held in the third round, ESPN+ also carried the draw from Wembley Stadium with the stream kicking off at 11:50 a.m. ET on Sunday, Jan. 9, just 20 minutes before the Nottingham Forest vs. Arsenal match and the day before the final match of the round at Old Trafford. The winners of both those matches knew where they would play before their matches began.
The draw was also carried live on YouTube on the official FA Cup channel.
The 20 minutes allotted was more than enough time to get the draw in, given how efficiently run they are compared to the productions that are undertaken for other competitions: Each surviving team was assigned a number and the balls with those numbers were drawn by David James and Leah Williamson. It's as simple as that. There is no unscrewing of hollow balls with small scrolls of paper unfurled, a process which can add significant time to the proceedings.