The running order for the final of the Adobe Women’s FA Cup at Wembley Stadium connected by EE has been confirmed by The Football Association.
TV presenter and radio personality Vick Hope will get the party started at the 2024 Adobe Women’s FA Cup Final with a pre-match DJ set from 13:00. Hope, who is also the host of the ‘Tooney and Russo Show’ podcast featuring FA Cup finalist Ella Toone, will play a range of crowd pleasers to a sold-out Wembley Stadium to get the atmosphere building ahead of the final.
Just before kick-off, Issey Cross will take to the stage for a live performance which will include her hit track Bittersweet Goodbye, a rework of The Verve classic anthem Bittersweet Sympathy. The performances are part of an ongoing partnership between The FA and BBC Radio 1, which will also see Jeremiah Asiamah return to DJ at the Emirates FA Cup Final on Saturday 25 May.
The 2024 Adobe Women’s FA Cup Final sold-out in record time, and fans who got their tickets will be treated to an action-packed afternoon at the national stadium.
The official fan zone, located in Arena Square outside of the Ovo Arena, is open from 11:00-14:00 to ticket purchasers of all ages. From live DJ performances and freestyle footballers, to games, prizes, face painting, selfie frames, a 360 camera and an FA Cup themed coffee truck, the fan zone offers entertainment options for the whole family.
Running order:
11:00 - Fan Zone opens (Arena Square)
11:30 - Hospitality areas open
12:30 - Turnstiles open
13:00 - Vick Hope DJ set in-bowl
13:40 - Player warm-ups begin
14:00 - Fan Zone closes (Arena Square)
14:15 - Issey Cross live performance in-bowl
14:30 - Kick-off
After Vick Hope and Issey Cross have got the crowd hyped up inside the stadium, the match ball will be walked out by Natasha Leach from sixth tier club Arnold Eagles, who is set to win the ‘Mitre Golden Ball’ award which honours the top scorer in the Adobe Women’s FA Cup. The striker, who is attending the final with her 11-year-old daughter who also plays for the Eagles, has scored 15 goals in this season’s competition.
Ceremonial military representative and Royal Air Force sergeant Jenny Whatton will walk out and place the Adobe Women’s FA Cup trophy on the plinth ahead of kick-off. She will also present the winning team with the trophy in the Royal Box after the conclusion of the game. Whatton has served in the RAF for 17 years as an avionics technician and has also managed RAF Coningsby’s women’s team for the last five years, leading them to victory in two seasons in the Lincolnshire Services League.
The pre-match ceremony will see over 100 staff and cadets from Thames Valley Wing, Air Training Corps and Recruits from RAF Cosford display the Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur club crest banners on the Wembley pitch.
The FA’s Board Chair, Debbie Hewitt MBE, will lead out the traditional presentation party, which will also include Sue Hough MBE, Chair of The FA Women’s Football Board, and Simon Morris, Marketing President of title partner Adobe. The two finalist captains will introduce their teams to the presentation party.
Following the presentation, classical singer Marienella Phillips will lead the crowd in singing the national anthem, making her first appearance at Wembley. A British Sign Language interpreter, Joanna Aldridge, will be present at both the Adobe Women’s FA Cup Final and the Emirates FA Cup Final to interpret the national anthem and other key moments in the afternoon’s running order.
After the first half comes to conclusion, Vick Hope will return to the DJ decks to keep the crowd entertained during the interval.
