In 1971, Alvechurch and Oxford City needed six matches to decide a single FA Cup tie. At the time, drawn FA Cup matches were simply replayed. And if the replay ended level too? They played again, and again. And again. Alvechurch and Oxford City eventually faced each other six times, producing around 11 hours of football before the tie was finally settled. It became one of the most extraordinary examples of how different the FA Cup once was. Today, a sequence like this cannot happen. The competition has moved away from unlimited replays and FA Cup replays themselves have now disappeared. The tradition of replaying drawn matches was restricted in 2018 and completely abolished in 2024. So this bizarre 1971 marathon remains a piece of football history that is effectively impossible to repeat. And after five draws, Alvechurch finally ended the never-ending story winning the sixth match 1-0. Six matches. One cup tie. Eleven hours of football.