1996 FA Cup Final flamboyance and audacity - the likes of which hadn’t been seen in English football before." 1996 FA Cup Final The 1996 FA Cup Final was the 51st to be held at Wembley Stadium after the Second World War and was held between two of the biggest rivals in English football, Manchester United and Liverpool. A few days before the final, Manchester United had secured their third league title in four years (1992–93, 1993–94 and 1995–96, coming second in 1994–95). The final was also their third in three seasons, having beaten Chelsea 4–0 in 1994 and lost 1–0 to Everton in
2007 FA Cup Final weeks earlier. The game was widely considered to be a disappointment by pundits and fans alike. As a result of Manchester United and Chelsea having already been guaranteed qualification for the UEFA Champions League, the UEFA Cup entry for the FA Cup winner/runner-up went instead to the highest positioned Premier League team who had not already qualified for Europe: Bolton Wanderers. The match had an attendance of 89,826, the largest for an FA Cup Final since Wimbledon's famous 1–0 win over Liverpool in the 1988 final, when 98,203 attended. Chelsea became only the third club to complete the domestic cup