1930 FA Cup final

The 1930 FA Cup final was a football match contested by Arsenal and Huddersfield Town at Wembley Stadium on 26 April 1930. It was the final match of the 1929–30 FA Cup, the 55th season of the world's oldest football knockout competition, the FA Cup.

Arsenal won 2–0, with goals from Alex James and Jack Lambert. As a result, Arsenal won their first FA Cup after a defeat in their FA Cup final debut in 1927.

The 1930 Final was the first Cup Final in which both teams entered the pitch side by side, led by Tom Parker and Tom Wilson, in honour of Arsenal manager Herbert Chapman, who had managed Huddersfield to great success in the 1920s. When Chapman arrived at Arsenal in 1925, he claimed it would take him five years to build a winning team. Five years later, Arsenal's cup final performance proved him right.

Historically, Huddersfield Town had been a more dominant team, winning the 1921-22 FA Cup. Coached by Chapman, Huddersfield won the league in 1923-4, 1924-25, and 1925-26, making them the first club to win three successive league titles. In 1927-28, Huddersfield Town had finished runners-up in both the league and the FA Cup. Meanwhile, Arsenal had won nothing in nearly fifty years with only a runners-up performance in the 1926-27 FA Cup to speak of.

Arsenal came into the game following a 6–6 draw at Leicester City, the highest-scoring draw in English top-flight history, five days prior. Dave Halliday, who scored four of Arsenal's goals that game, was omitted from the Cup Final squad in favour of Jack Lambert.

The 1930 FA Cup Final is remembered for the Graf Zeppelin passing over the stadium. The Zeppelin was, at the time, the largest airship ever and was around 776 ft in length. Prior to the match, King George V was also introduced to the players, a surprise outing as he had been recovering from illness for eighteen months. The airship saluted him as it passed by.

After first being broadcast on BBC Radio in 1928, the 1930 final was the first for which a fee was paid for the rights. It was also only the fifth time that a game had been broadcast live. George Allisson, an Arsenal director and shareholder, would provide commentary.

The rest of the Cup day programming included a 4-4 draw between Wolves and Bradford Park Avenue, Fred Cheesmuir scoring six goals for Gillingham in their 6-0 defeat of Merthyr town, Lincoln City beating New Brighton 5-2, and Sheffield Wednesday holding their lead at the top of the First Division, beating Grimsby Town 1-0.