FA Cup holders and Premier League club Crystal Palace are beaten 2-1 by team six leagues lower, Macclesfield Town.

Published On 10 Jan 2026

Minnow Macclesfield Town beat title holder Crystal Palace 2-1 in one of the biggest upsets in FA Cup history to reach the fourth round.

Macclesfield is a team playing in the sixth tier of English football, five levels below its Premier League opponent, and took the lead on Saturday when captain Paul Dawson headed in a cross from Luke Duffy in the 43rd minute.

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Isaac Buckley-Ricketts made it 2-0 in the 60th, prompting wild celebrations.

Following a scramble in the penalty area the ball pinged to Buckley-Ricketts, who came through the Manchester City academy, and he deftly clipped the ball with the outside of his right foot past goalkeeper Walter Benítez.

Macclesfield is coached by John Rooney, who started and ended his playing career as a midfielder with the club and is in only his first season coaching. He is the younger brother of former England and Manchester United star Wayne Rooney.

Yeremy Pino curled in a last-minute free kick over the wall to leave Macclesfield facing a nervous six minutes of stoppage time as home fans broke out into chants of “Silkmen! Silkmen!” — the club’s nickname.

General view as Macclesfield Town’s fans and players celebrate on the pitch after the match at Moss Rose [Chris Radburn/Reuters]

Macclesfield held on against a Palace side whose dismal afternoon was summed up when United States central defender Chris Richards did a foul throw in the final minute of stoppage time, giving possession back to Macclesfield.

The fans sprinted onto the field at Moss Rose – a modest 5,900-capacity stadium in northwest England – in celebration at the final whistle while Dawson and Duffy were carried aloft.

The FA Cup has long been regarded as the greatest cup competition in the world, with a long history of giant killings.

Macclesfield, toppling the holders, sits towards the top of those achievements and may well come to be regarded as the most famous yet with Palace having enjoying a successful campaign in the English top flight this season where they at one stage were challenging for the Champions League qualification positions.

Macclesfield are currently 14th, 11 points above the relegation zone, in National League North – two leagues below professional level in English football.

Crystal Palace’s Marc Guehi looks dejected after the match as Macclesfield fans take to the field to celebrate with players [Jason Cairnduff/Reuters]