1997 FA Cup Final 1997 FA Cup Final The 1997 FA Cup Final was the 116th final of the FA Cup. It took place on 17 May 1997 at Wembley Stadium and was contested by Chelsea and Middlesbrough, the North East club appearing in its first FA Cup Final. Chelsea won 2–0 to win the FA Cup for the second time, the first having come in 1970. Their Dutch manager, Ruud Gullit, thus became the first foreign or non-white manager to win a major trophy with an English club. It was the first major honour in the career of most Chelsea's player, but for
Non-English football clubs in the FA Cup Cowlairs. In 1887, the Scottish Football Association banned its members from taking any further part in the FA Cup. No more Scottish clubs participated until Gretna F.C. entered the competition in the 1980s. Because the town of Gretna is located extremely close to the border, the local football club had opted to play in the English football league system and by the 1980s had reached the Northern Premier League, making the team eligible to enter the FA Cup. Gretna played in the qualifying rounds of the FA Cup for nineteen seasons, making the first round proper twice, until the club