Exeter City will visit the Etihad Stadium to face former Premier League winners, Manchester City, in an FA Cup 3rd Round Fixture, set to take place on January 10th, 2026.
Exeter City, who currently sit 20th in Sky Bet League One, will hope to create an underdog story against the three times Premier League Champions, who most recently won the league in the 2023/2024 season, where they accumulated a total point tally of 91.
The committed Grecians have snapped up their full allocation of 7,800, with the club confirming that the game is now sold out.
This following is considered as very impressive, as the supporters will have to make the 480 mile trip to back their team.
The club have confirmed that club provided coaches are available to be purchased to help with this lengthy trip.
“It’ll be a nice bonus, and I think we should look at this as a great football experience, a great occasion for the players, for the supporters, to go and experience a Premier League ground and give our very best to cause one of the biggest upsets of all time if we manage to win the game,” said boss Gary Caldwell when speaking to BBC Devon.
Exeter are in desperate need of a cash boost after the fire that took place to St James Park in November.
A cup tie against Premier League giants Manchester City could be viewed as a very crucial chance for revenue, similar to the fixture against Manchester United in 2005.
In that fixture, Exeter managed to secure a replay at St James Park, which managed to prove a huge factor to improve financial stability for Exeter.
Unfortunately, this time round Exeter will not be able to play for a replay after the FA scrapped replays in 2024, meaning they will only have the chance to watch their team play the Premier League giants at The Etihad for now.
Many Exeter fans were hoping for the fixture to be broadcasted to the nation, but it was announced that this tie was not a part of the eight fixtures that TNT Sports are set to broadcast.
Although Exeter City may not be able to have a huge financial boost from this fixture, the opportunity for 7,800 Grecians to travel to Manchester to watch their team play a Premier League giant is one that will be heavily appreciated by the Devon based fans, and should provide a great viewing for the footballing world.
