2012 FA Cup final

The 2012 FA Cup final was a football match between Chelsea and Liverpool on 5 May 2012. It was the final match of the 2011–12 FA Cup, the 131st season of the world's oldest football knockout competition, the FA Cup. Chelsea were participating in their eleventh final, they had previously won six and lost four. Liverpool were appearing in their fourteenth final, they had won seven times and lost six. Scheduled to provide a clear four-week period between the end of the English season and the start of UEFA Euro 2012, the date of the final clashed with Premier League fixtures. To avoid having the final played at the same time as league games, the match kicked off at the later time of 5:15 p.m., rather than the usual 3:00 p.m., by which time the other fixtures had ended.

As both teams were in the highest tier of English football, the Premier League, they entered the competition in the Third Round. Matches up to the semi-final were contested on a one-off basis, with a replay taking place if the match ended in a draw. Chelsea's matches ranged from comfortable victories to close affairs. They beat Tottenham Hotspur 5–1 in the semi-final, while they beat Queens Park Rangers 1–0 in the Fourth Round. Liverpool's matches were similar, with three ending in a 2–1 scoreline, while the other two against Oldham Athletic and Brighton & Hove Albion were won by at least four goals.

Watched by a crowd of 89,102, Ramires put Chelsea in front in the 11th minute after he dispossessed Liverpool midfielder Jay Spearing and beat Pepe Reina in the Liverpool area. They extended their lead in the 52nd minute when striker Didier Drogba scored. Liverpool substitute Andy Carroll scored in the 64th minute to reduce the deficit to one goal. Carroll thought he had scored a second in the 81st minute, but his header was saved on the line by Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Čech. Carroll ran off celebrating, as he thought the ball had crossed, but referee Phil Dowd did not award a goal and Chelsea held on to win the match 2–1.

As a Premier League team, Chelsea entered the competition in the Third Round, where they were drawn at home to Portsmouth. After a goalless first half Juan Mata struck early in the second, before Ramires hit two in two minutes and Frank Lampard scored in stoppage time to give Chelsea a 4–0 win. Chelsea then travelled to face local rivals Queens Park Rangers at Loftus Road in the Fourth Round, where a controversial Mata penalty was enough to see them through.

Chelsea were drawn to play at home against Birmingham City in the Fifth Round, with Birmingham dominating the first half through a David Murphy goal. Daniel Sturridge scored in the second half to force a replay, which was played on 6 March at Birmingham, just two days after André Villas-Boas was relieved of his duties as Chelsea manager. Birmingham held Chelsea throughout the first half, and looked the stronger side at times, but after Mata and Raul Meireles scored twice in five minutes, Chelsea dominated the remainder of the game until the final whistle. In the Sixth Round, Chelsea overcame Leicester City at home in a 5–2 thriller. Gary Cahill scored his first FA Cup goal for Chelsea from a corner in the 12th minute, with Salomon Kalou following up five minutes later. In the second half, Fernando Torres ended a goal drought of over 25 hours to score, before Jermaine Beckford gave Leicester a late lifeline. Torres scored again in the 85th minute to put the result beyond doubt, although Ben Marshall grabbed one back three minutes later, before Meireles scored in the 90th minute to send Chelsea through to the semi-final.

In the semi-final, Chelsea faced local rivals Tottenham Hotspur at Wembley. The first half was even, with both sides enjoying long spells of possession, until Didier Drogba put Chelsea ahead just before the break. Chelsea scored at the start of the second half. However, Juan Mata's goal that did not appear to cross the line, but referee Martin Atkinson awarded the goal. Gareth Bale put Tottenham back in it with a goal shortly after a Petr Čech challenge on Emmanuel Adebayor. Despite the goal, Tottenham never took control of the game and Ramires scored in the 77th minute, followed minutes later by a Frank Lampard free kick, and a Florent Malouda strike in the fourth minute of added time. This secured Chelsea's place in their first FA Cup Final since their 2010 triumph over Portsmouth.

Liverpool – also a Premier League team – entered the competition in the Third Round too. Their opening match was a 5–1 home win against Oldham Athletic. Robbie Simpson opened the scoring for Oldham in the 28th minute, but Craig Bellamy equalised just two minutes later, with Steven Gerrard scoring a penalty to give Liverpool the lead. Jonjo Shelvey scored his first goal for the club in the second half, before late goals from Andy Carroll and Stewart Downing ensured progression to the Fourth Round.

For the Fourth Round, Liverpool were drawn at their home ground, Anfield against Manchester United. The match took place in the wake of the racial abuse row between Luis Suárez and Patrice Evra, for which Suárez was serving an eight-match ban. Daniel Agger opened the scoring with a header from a corner, before Park Ji-sung equalised for United before half-time. With the match approaching full-time, Dirk Kuyt scored in the 88th minute to give Liverpool a 2–1 victory and secured their place in the Fifth Round. Their opponents were Brighton & Hove Albion, whom Liverpool beat 6–1 at Anfield, courtesy of goals from Martin Škrtel, Carroll and Suárez, as well as three own goals.