WATCH FA CUP SEMI FINALS ON BBC AND ITV
The road to Wembley is no longer just about Cup Final Day anymore, with the FA Cup Semi Finals now part of the National Stadium staple every season/ Live FA Cup games on TV are shown through a shared coverage agreement between BBC and ITV in the UK.
With Sheffield United the final non Premier League side reaching the last 4, and Brighton fans rekindling memories of 1983; there is still plenty hope for those cheering for the underdog, as they face off against the Manchester giants in the FA Cup Semi Finals 2023.
Our FA Cup Semi Final 2023 preview is brought to you in partnership with EPL Index, and their Two Footed Podcast, FREE podcasts to football fans.
All eyes on Wembley with free live streaming of the FA Cup Semi Finals on BBC and ITV this weekend.
FA Cup Quarter Final | Manchester City vs Sheffield United
Saturday 22 March | 1645 BST | ITV Live Streaming
Sheffield United face a daunting task in their upcoming match against Manchester City, with expectations not in their favor. Although they have reached the semi-finals after a superb run, including a win over Spurs in the fifth round, the challenge of taking on the might of Manchester City is akin to facing Bayern Munich or Real Madrid.
While it is not unprecedented for a team from outside the top flight to make it to this stage of the FA Cup, it is also not a regular occurrence. The last team to do so was Reading in 2014-15, who put up a valiant fight against Arsenal before losing to an unforgettable winner from Alexis Sánchez, which proved to be a heartbreaking moment for Adam Federici.
In fact, the last time a non-top-flight team eliminated a top-flight team in the semi-finals was in the 1991-92 season when Sunderland beat Norwich at Hillsborough. Since then, the top-flight team has progressed to the final in each of the 13 such matchups, though on four occasions, the game went to extra-time.
While Sheffield United is the second-best team in the Championship this season, behind a brilliant Burnley side, the concern for Paul Heckingbottom’s men is that Manchester City recently scored six goals against Burnley. However, City has been in fantastic form in recent months and is unlikely to falter in this game. Still, there is hope for the Blades, as Wigan Athletic, a third-tier team, eliminated Pep Guardiola’s side from this competition in the 2017-18 season, though City has since won 21 matches in a row against teams from lower divisions.
Manchester City’s attention may be elsewhere in this game, with their next match against Arsenal likely to be a winner-takes-all encounter in terms of Premier League success. Although City is experienced in these situations, Arsenal is a formidable opponent, and this fixture will undoubtedly be on the minds of many at the club.
FA Cup Quarter Final | Brighton vs Manchester United
Sunday 23 March | 1630 BST | BBC Live Streaming
Brighton will attempt to achieve something they have never accomplished before – winning an FA Cup tie against Manchester United. The Seagulls have been defeated in each of their previous five FA Cup ties against the Red Devils, the most recent being in the 2017-18 quarter-finals.
However, Brighton has won their last two competitive encounters with Man Utd, both under former manager Graham Potter, with a combined score of 6-1.
Manchester United has the most experience in FA Cup semi-finals compared to any other team. This will be their 31st FA Cup semi-final tie. They won 13 consecutive semi-final ties between 1976 and 2007, but they have now lost three of their last five at this stage, the most recent being against Chelsea in 2020.
Brighton has reached their third FA Cup semi-final. They defeated Sheffield Wednesday to make it to the final in 1983, but lost to eventual champions Manchester City in 2019. Following their win against Sheffield Wednesday, they lost the final 4-0 in a replay against Man Utd after drawing the initial game 2-2 at Wembley.
Unfortunately, Brighton’s matches against United in the 1983 final marked the beginning of a terrible run of form at Wembley Stadium. They have never won a competitive match at Wembley, drawing one and losing four of their five visits there.
Manchester United’s defence is dealing with an injury crisis before this semi-final, with Lisandro Martinez set to miss the remainder of the 2022-23 season due to a metatarsal injury and centre-back partner Raphael Varane also out. Donny van de Beek will be absent from their midfield, while Scott McTominay is unlikely to be cleared, but Bruno Fernandes returns to the squad after being suspended for Thursday’s UEFA Europa League loss to Sevilla.
Adam Lallana, Evan Ferguson, Joel Veltman, Jason Steele, Jeremy Sarmiento, and Tariq Lamptey will all miss out on the semi-final due to injury for Brighton.
No matter where you are, you can use your Liberty Shield VPN to find a way to watching the FA Cup Semi Final round. Don’t have a Liberty Shield VPN? You’re missing out! Click right here to check out what we can offer you, and use the code EPL25 to get a 25% OFF your VPN or VPN Router at check-out.
How to watch the FA Cup Semi Finals from anywhere…
FA Cup matches for the 2022/23 season will be streamed live between BBC and ITV, as well as their respective apps for iPhone, iPad, Android, Smart TV, Now TV, FireTV etc.
But these streaming services are not available to everyone, for example when you load BBC iPlayer or ITVx in the USA, Germany, Ireland, Netherlands, France, Spain, Portugal, Australia, Dubai, Canada etc. you will get an error message.
BBC iPlayer only works in the uk. Sorry, it’s due to rights issues.
This is basically because their streaming services are geoblocked based on the IP address being used to access it. You must be a UK domestic web user to access BT Sport, Sky Sports, Amazon Prime UK, ITV and BBC Sport live tv streaming.
- Get a UK IP address for FA Cup Semi Finals 2023
- If you want to watch on your Windows PC, Mac, FireTV, iPhone, iPad or Android then you can get a UK Proxy or VPN Apps from Liberty Shield, FREE for 48 hours and then from only £8.99 per month.
- Prefer to watch on supported media streaming devices like Now TV, Smart TVs, Apple TV, Xbox, PS4, Roku etc? You’ll need a UK configured VPN Router setup as British, available from only £22.99 with Worldwide Shipping available.
How can I watch ITV Sport FA Cup matches live?
The FA Cup will be broadcast entirely on free-to-air television in 2022 after ITV announced a four-year broadcast deal with the Football Association. ITV has revealed it will screen 20 live matches per season in the world’s oldest football competition from 2021/22 to 2024/25, sharing coverage with the BBC from the opening round through to the final.
ITV will have the first and fourth choices of the second and fourth rounds and the quarter-finals as well as second and third selections for the first, third and fifth rounds. Matches will be screen on terrestrial TV as well as ITV.com and ITV Hub apps on various devices.
How can I watch BBC Sport FA Cup matches live?
With Premier League Pay-Per-View now scrapped, the BBC gets their live action once again through their FA Cup rights. They also offer free FA Cup and Premier League VPN 20/21 highlights, with Match of the Day and Match of the Day 2, available live when screened on the BBC Sport website, and also on catchup with BBC iPlayer.
Furthermore; ITV Sport and BBC Sport aren’t the only geographically-censored streaming services a VPN or Proxy will allow you to access. Other UK services like Sky Sports, Now TV, BBC iPlayer, Amazon Prime, BT Sport, All 4 and BritBox are available. Plus with the option to switch to our USA service whenever you like, you can access Hulu, HBO GO, Netflix and Pandora. Essentially you can access international content from virtually anywhere!
