FA Cup Third Qualifying Round Draw Today

The FA Cup’s third qualifying round draw arrives today, and for dozens of non-League clubs it marks the moment the dream starts to feel real.

The balls come out of the hat at 1pm, setting up ties that will edge the winners to within touching distance of the first round proper in early November. Six qualifying rounds stand between August’s hopefuls and the bright lights of the main competition; we’re already at the penultimate stage.

This is the point where ambition sharpens. With Premier League and Championship sides waiting much further down the line, and League One and League Two clubs entering at the first round, non-League managers are already sketching out potential routes to the kind of lucrative, season-shaping fixtures that can transform a club’s finances and profile.

They will know the next step on that journey this afternoon. Once the draw is published after lunchtime, every coach, chairman and volunteer up and down the pyramid can start planning – travel, tactics, and maybe even a little bit of history.

Mirror Football will track every twist of the draw as it happens, and the real stories will start the moment those ties are set.