Travel chaos looms for semi-final fans

Old Trafford will host the FA Cup semi-final between Sheffield United and either Chelsea and Arsenal. The decision means potential travel chaos for fans of whichever London team progresses to the last four. The semi-final will kick-off at 1.30pm on Sunday 13 April. Supporters of Southampton and Watford also face longer than anticipated trips. Their semi-final will be played at Villa Park on the same day at 4.30pm.

"The Arsenal or Chelsea versus Sheffield United semi-final might have been better suited geographically to Villa Park," Paul Barber, a Football Association spokesman, said. He added that Old Trafford was chosen for its greater capacity. The venue holds almost 68,000, some 25,000 more than Villa Park. It is less easy to reach from London, however, due to delays on the main west coast railway line and congestion on the M6. Chelsea and Arsenal will replay their quarter-final on 25 March.

Barber said that the FA would have preferred to stage Watford v Southampton at a London venue. That was ruled out because the date clashes with the London Marathon and a match at Highbury or Stamford Bridge would over-stretch police resources. White Hart Lane was ruled out because it cannot accommodate fans with a 50-50 split of tickets.

The semi-finals have to be settled on the day, meaning Southampton and Watford will know their potential opponents before kick-off. If the early match has been won by Arsenal or Chelsea, who are both on course to qualify for Europe through the Premiership, the Villa Park semi-final will effectively become a Uefa Cup qualifying decider.

Although extra-time and penalties might decide April's ties, replays before the semi-final stage will remain in place following a meeting yesterday of the FA Challenge Cup committee. Arsenal's vice-chairman David Dein and manager Arsène Wenger had both called for replays to be scrapped.

The FA also announced new rules to stop non-League clubs from switching FA Cup home ties to bigger League grounds, as Farnborough did this season. From 2003-04 every club entering the Cup will have to state their maximum capacity on their entry form. If a small club subsequently wants to switch a tie, the FA will either refuse permission or stage the game at the nearest suitable location, not the opponents' ground. Any excess profits from relocated ties – above projected income from the stated maximum attendance – will go to a central pool to discourage relocation for profit.