Macclesfield stun Crystal Palace in FA Cup third round

SHARJAH: In one of the most remarkable upsets of the Emirates FA Cup, Macclesfield FC defeated Premier League side Crystal Palace 2-1 on Saturday, bridging an astonishing gap of 117 league places in a magical third-round tie.

Paul Dawson and Isaac Buckley-Richards scored the decisive goals, securing a historic victory for Macclesfield, who sit 14th in the National League North. The win saw them eliminate the cup holders, creating one of the most talked-about results of the tournament.

Lower-league teams continued to make headlines as the FA Cup produced more surprise outcomes, with underdogs triumphing against fancied rivals.

During the match, Macclesfield clung on for one of the FA Cup’s biggest surprise results, albeit Yeremy Pino struck home a late free-kick to silence the home crowd.

Paul Dawson puts sixth-tier @thesilkmen ahead against the #EmiratesFACup holders! 🤯

📺 Watch live on @BBCMOTD and @footballontnt pic.twitter.com/eaQMBGLG4T

— Emirates FA Cup (@EmiratesFACup) January 10, 2026

Harrison Bettoni’s deflected 75th-minute strike proved decisive, while Callum Wright also missed a penalty late on for the visitors, increasing uproar among the fans.

The tie marked the first meeting between the FA Cup holders and a non-league side since 2004–05, with Wolves being the last holders to be knocked out by a non-league team in 1908–09—a team that, incidentally, was Crystal Palace themselves.

Nottingham Forest and Crystal Palace became the first Premier League sides to be eliminated from the famous competition this season, losing to Wrexham and Macclesfield, respectively.

Ryan Lowe was delighted after League One side Wigan stunned his former club Preston, who sit fourth in the Championship, with a 1-0 victory in the FA Cup third round at Deepdale.

The Wigan manager said, “I’m pleased for our fans, pleased for our lads—the game plan worked a treat. I did enjoy it, of course, coming back to my old club and performing at the level we did, limiting them to very few chances, if any. We had three big opportunities and should have scored more—the penalty, and a couple in the first half—against a fantastic team flying high in the Championship, so why wouldn’t you be pleased?”

He added, “There were nearly 4,000 of our fans in the away end. They out-sang the Preston North End supporters, and it was fantastic.”

Lowe, animated after the final whistle, also took a parting swipe at Preston fans. “It was a special moment, and if they’re going to give stick, you’ve got to be able to give it back. I relished that at the end of the game.”