2002 FA Cup Final Arsenal were appearing in the final of the FA Cup for the fifteenth time, and for the second consecutive year. They had won the cup seven times previously (in 1930, 1936, 1950, 1971, 1979, 1993 and 1998) and were beaten in the final seven times, the most recent in last season's showpiece event. By comparison, Chelsea were making their seventh appearance in a FA Cup final. The club won the cup three times (1970, 1997 and 2000) and lost the same number of finals (1915, 1967 and 1994). Arsenal and Chelsea had previously met fourteen times in the FA Cup,
2002–03 Iraq FA Cup 2002–03 Iraq FA Cup The 2002–03 Iraq FA Cup was the 25th edition of the knockout competition, the main domestic cup in Iraqi football. It kicked off on 2 September 2002, and the final was played on 23 August 2003 in the Franso Hariri Stadium. This was the first time in the tournament's history that the cup final was not played in Al-Shaab Stadium in Baghdad. Al-Talaba were the defending champions of the cup after beating Al-Shorta 1–0 in the 2002 final, and the exact same was repeated one year later as Al-Talaba beat Al-Shorta 1–0 again to lift their