Reason there are two FA Cup draws football fans never get to see on TV | Football | Sport
The next phase of this season’s FA Cup is shaping up as we approach the fourth-round draw. The advancing teams will find out their opponents in the next stage of the competition when the draw takes place on Monday evening. Despite the snappy nature of the event, a significant amount of planning and practice goes into ensuring it runs smoothly. Broadcasters even conduct multiple dress rehearsals to prepare for the actual draw, ensuring every detail is perfect for what is always a brief-but-essential segment.
The short duration of the slot makes meticulous preparation crucial to avoid any errors. TNT Sports are overseeing the proceedings due to their new broadcasting deal, with Monday’s draw scheduled to take place prior to Liverpool‘s match against Barnsley. Each ‘technical run’ allows the programme director to evaluate the studio setup and ensure guests are correctly positioned. It also provides an opportunity to plan camera shots and determine where to zoom when balls are drawn.
The audio and visual elements are also critical, with the director on the lookout for potential distractions. These could range from lights reflecting off the glass bowls at the centre of the action, to ensuring the sound of the balls in the pot doesn’t drown out the microphones.
Those working in the gallery must remain vigilant, updating on-screen graphics each time a team is drawn and a new fixture is confirmed. The draw guests themselves face considerable pressure, too.
Drawing balls from the bowl too hastily could complicate matters for the broadcast team managing the on-screen visuals. Conversely, moving too slowly risks disrupting the timing of a tight schedule.
During his tenure at TNT Sports, former host Jake Humphrey occasionally shared the results of practice draws. This sometimes led to disappointment among fans who found their actual draw less exciting than the rehearsal.
One notable instance saw Humphrey and Rio Ferdinand reveal Manchester United had been drawn against Liverpool in the very first pull of a practice draw. Following interest from supporters, the presenter explained why these rehearsals matter.
He responded to one follower on X: “It’s more about making sure the lighting is right, the cameras know which shots to get, the satellite link to the globe is stable, the graphics are all ready, the bits of VT are right and that we do the draw in the right amount of time allotted to us.”
His insight into the process gave viewers a glimpse behind the scenes before the cameras start rolling. The extent of preparation clearly surprised many watching at home.
“It’s literally taking balls out of a bowl,” one baffled fan wrote in a 2018 response to Humphrey’s practice draw post. “Is it really so hard that you need to rehearse it twice?”
This season’s fourth-round draw will see an unexpected participant in the form of sixth-tier Macclesfield, who achieved a 2-1 upset victory over reigning champions Crystal Palace on Saturday. After such a feat, there are few teams in the competition likely to daunt the National League North side.
Chelsea will also be in the hat following Liam Rosenior’s debut in the dugout with a 5-1 thrashing of Charlton. Ryan Reynolds’ Wrexham also progressed by upsetting Premier League side Nottingham Forest in a penalty shootout.
