1888–89 FA Cup qualifying rounds
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Country | England Wales Ireland | 
The FA Cup, from this season onwards, began to incorporate a series of qualifying rounds in order to determine qualifiers for the actual Cup competition itself. The qualifying rounds were made up of amateur teams, semi-professional teams, and professional sides not yet associated with the Football League. The only game to be played on Christmas Day took place, Linfield Athletic beating Cliftonville 7–0.[1] Everton became the first Football League team to withdraw from the Cup after drawing Ulster in the first qualifying round.[2]
See 1888–89 FA Cup for details of the rounds from the First Round onwards.
First qualifying round
| Home team (tier) | Score | Away team (tier) | 
| Replay: Saturday 12 October 1889 | ||
| Bolton Wanderers | W-W | Hurst – Walkover Home | 
| Lincoln City | 1–1 | Grimsby Town | 
| Shrewsbury Town | 2–1 | Wellington St George's | 
| Replay: Saturday 20 October 1889 | ||
| South Bank | 4–0 | Sheffield | 
| 2nd replay: Wednesday 24 October 1889 | ||
| Grimsby Town | 3–1 | Lincoln City | 
Second qualifying round
| Home Club | Score | Away Club | Date | 
|---|---|---|---|
| Chester | 5–1 | Over Wanderers | 27 October 1888 | 
| Maidenhead | 1–2 | Old Brightonians | 27 October 1888 | 
| Old Harrovians | 0–1 | Crusaders | 27 October 1888 | 
| Notts County | 4–2 | Beeston St John's | 27 October 1888 | 
| Blackburn Olympic | 1–3 | Oswaldtwistle Rovers | 27 October 1888 | 
| Staveley | 4–0 | Matlock | 27 October 1888 | 
| Heeley | 2–1 | South Bank | 27 October 1888 | 
| Chatham | 4–0 | London Caledonians | 27 October 1888 | 
| Clitheroe | 0–7 | Higher Walton | 27 October 1888 | 
| South Shore | 7–1 | Southport Central | 27 October 1888 | 
| Rossendale | 4–3 | Darwen | 27 October 1888 | 
| Derby Midland | 2–1 | Derby St Luke's | 27 October 1888 | 
| Leek | 4–0 | Oldbury Town | 27 October 1888 | 
| Newark | 4–4 | Grimsby Town | 27 October 1888 | 
| Sunderland | 5–3 | Elswick Rangers | 27 October 1888 | 
| Casuals | 1–3 | Clapton | 27 October 1888 | 
| Chirk | 12–0 | Nantwich | 27 October 1888 | 
| Burton Wanderers | 4–0 | Shrewsbury Town | 27 October 1888 | 
| Horncastle | 0–1 | Boston | 27 October 1888 | 
| Chesham | 3–3 | Luton Town | 27 October 1888 | 
| Basford Rovers | 0–1 | Mellors | 27 October 1888 | 
| Watford Rovers | 6–0 | Old Foresters | 27 October 1888 | 
| Cleethorpes Town | Walkover | Netherfield | |
| Newcastle West End | 1–2 | Sunderland Albion | 27 October 1888 | 
| Swindon Town | 2–5 | Marlow | 27 October 1888 | 
| Old St Mark's | 3–1 | Lancing Old Boys | 27 October 1888 | 
| Morpeth Harriers | 3–1 Match void | Birtley | 27 October 1888 | 
| Owlerton | 3–2 | Rotherham Town | 27 October 1888 | 
| Scarborough | 2–4 | Ecclesfield | 27 October 1888 | 
| Newcastle East End | 2–1 | Stockton | 27 October 1888 | 
| Warwick County | 4–2 | Aston Shakespeare | 27 October 1888 | 
| West Manchester | 1–0 Match void | Bolton Wanderers | 27 October 1888 | 
| Jardines | 0–4 | Gainsborough Trinity | 27 October 1888 | 
| Park Grange | 2–1 Match void | Attercliffe | 27 October 1888 | 
| Vale of Llangollen | 6–3 | Oswestry | 27 October 1888 | 
| Liverpool Stanley | 3–0 | Astley Bridge | 27 October 1888 | 
| YMCA | 0–5 | Cliftonville | 27 October 1888 | 
| Ulster | 1–7 | Linfield Athletic | 27 October 1888 | 
| Small Heath | 3–2 | Burslem Port Vale | 27 October 1888 | 
| Wrexham | 3–2 | Northwich Victoria | 27 October 1888 | 
Replays
| Home Club | Score | Away Club | Date | 
|---|---|---|---|
| Grimsby Town | 9–0 | Newark | 3 November 1888 | 
| Luton Town | 10–2 | Chesham | 3 November 1888 | 
| Birtley | 1–0 | Morpeth Harriers | 3 November 1888 | 
| Bolton Wanderers | 9–0 | West Manchester | 3 November 1888 | 
| Park Grange | 4–1 | Attercliffe | 3 November 1888 | 
Third qualifying round
| Home Club | Score | Away Club | Date | 
|---|---|---|---|
| Chester | 5–1 | Vale of Llangollen | 17 November 1888 | 
| Clapton | 0–1 | Chatham | 17 November 1888 | 
| Notts County | 2–1 | Derby Midland | 17 November 1888 | 
| Staveley | 5–0 | Mellors | 17 November 1888 | 
| Sheffield Heeley | 3–1 | Park Grange | 17 November 1888 | 
| Grimsby Town | 5–0 | Cleethorpes Town | 17 November 1888 | 
| South Shore | 4–0 | Oswaldtwistle Rovers | 17 November 1888 | 
| Rossendale | 2–3 | Higher Walton | 17 November 1888 | 
| Sunderland | 2–0 | Newcastle East End | 10 November 1888 | 
| Old Brightonians | 3–1 | Luton Town | 17 November 1888 | 
| Burton Wanderers | 5–1 | Warwick County | 17 November 1888 | 
| Gainsborough Trinity | 5–3 | Boston | 17 November 1888 | 
| Crusaders | 1–0 | Old St Mark's | 17 November 1888 | 
| Watford Rovers | 0–2 | Marlow | 17 November 1888 | 
| Cliftonville | Walkover | Liverpool Stanley | |
| Owlerton | 3–2 | Ecclesfield | 17 November 1888 | 
| Birtley | 2–5 | Sunderland Albion | 17 November 1888 | 
| Small Heath | 4–0 | Leek | 17 November 1888 | 
| Linfield Athletic | 4–0 | Bolton Wanderers | 17 November 1888 | 
| Wrexham | 2–1 | Chirk | 17 November 1888 | 
Fourth qualifying round
| Home Club | Score | Away Club | Date | 
|---|---|---|---|
| Chester | 2–3 | Wrexham | 8 December 1888 | 
| Staveley | 1–3 | Notts County | 8 December 1888 | 
| Sheffield Heeley | 5–1 | Owlerton | 8 December 1888 | 
| Chatham | 0–0 | Crusaders | 8 December 1888 | 
| Grimsby Town | Walkover | Gainsborough Trinity | |
| South Shore | 5–0 | Higher Walton | 8 December 1888 | 
| Old Brightonians | 5–2 | Marlow | 8 December 1888 | 
| Cliftonville | 3–3 | Linfield Athletic | 8 December 1888 | 
| Sunderland Albion | Walkover | Sunderland | |
| Small Heath | 9–0 | Burton Wanderers | 8 December 1888 | 
Replays
| Home Club | Score | Away Club | Date | 
|---|---|---|---|
| Crusaders | 2–3 | Chatham | 15 December 1888 | 
| Linfield Athletic | 3–3 | Cliftonville | 15 December 1888 | 
Second replay
| Home Club | Score | Away Club | Date | 
|---|---|---|---|
| Linfield Athletic | 7–0 | Cliftonville | 25 December 1888[1] |