Service Updates
Chiltern Railways by Arriva

Travel advice: FA Cup Semi-Final - Saturday 26 April 2025

Crystal Palace vs Aston Villa - Kick off 17:15

Saturday 26 April will see Aston Villa play Crystal Palace at Wembley in the the FA Cup Semi-Final.

To maximise the number of customers we can safely carry to Wembley with limited traincrew resources, we will be operating an enhanced service from Warwick Parkway. This means no Chiltern Railways train services will operate from Birmingham Moor Street, Solihull, Dorridge, Lapworth, Hatton or Warwick for the entire day.

For Aston Villa fans to make the kick off time of 17.15, there are two options by rail of getting to Wembley from the region. 

For Aston Villa supporters travelling to the match by rail:

  • Chiltern Railways will operate direct services from Warwick Parkway to Wembley Stadium
  • Avanti West Coast and London Northwestern Railway will operate services from Birmingham New Street to London Euston, where supporters can get onward travel to Wembley

As the kick off time is 17.15, return travel is expected to be limited and extremely busy. From 19.00 until the end of the day, there will be ten direct services from Wembley Stadium to Warwick Parkway. If the match goes into extra time and penalties, there will be seven direct services from Wembley Stadium to Warwick Parkway after 20.00. Other operators’ services will also be limited from London Euston. Customers may wish to consider extending their stay to the following day at the risk of a late evening finish and extremely limited rail services back to the West Midlands.

Services will be much busier than usual, so please allow plenty of time to make your journey. Queuing systems will be in place at Warwick Parkway, Leamington Spa, Banbury and Wembley Stadium. Where possible, we ask customers to purchase tickets ahead of travel using the Chiltern Railways website or App. We recommend that customers consider collecting pre-purchased paper tickets ahead of the day.

Finalised timetables for services operated by Chiltern Railways have now been loaded to online journey planners. Online journey planners are accurate and show the services we plan to run.

Free parking will be available throughout Saturday 26 April at Warwick Parkway, Leamington Spa and Banbury.

Best time to travel

Historic bookings suggest a significant number of fans will look to travel early on Saturday, getting into London mid-morning.  With a journey time of less than 2 hours, fans still to decide should consider travelling on a later service. After the game fans should consider returning home promptly, particularly if the game extends to include extra time and penalties, noting that queues will be expected at both London Euston and Wembley Stadium stations.

Travelling to London but not going to the football?

Many services are expected to be extremely busy throughout the day. You will not be able to travel from Birmingham Moor Street, Dorridge, Lapworth, Hatton, Solihull, Dorridge or Warwick all day. Please see the FAQ below "Are other routes affected?" for information across our wider network.

The London Marathon takes place on Sunday 27 April. Those considering travelling on Saturday 26 April should be aware that services are expected to be busier than usual.

  • For customers who still intend to travel:
    If customers not attending the football are travelling to London Marylebone from Banbury and stations north, we advise customers to travel early in the morning or after 15.00
  • If customers not attending the football are travelling from London Marylebone back towards Banbury and stations north, customers are advised to consider starting their journey before 19.00 as trains afterwards are likely to be very busy. The times of the busiest trains on the day will vary, depending on whether the football goes to extra-time / penalties.

Additional capacity and route options

London Euston Station is approximately 40 minutes from Wembley via the London Underground from Euston Square Tube station to Wembley Park station (Metropolitan Line).

Travel options with other train operators include:

  • London Northwestern Railway services between Birmingham New Street and London Euston
  • Avanti West Coast services between Birmingham New Street and London Euston

A queuing system will also be in place at Wembley Stadium station after the match with additional services running. Customers should expect some extended queuing times due to everyone leaving the venue at the same time. Please ensure that you join the correct queue for your journey home to avoid longer wait times.

For live journey updates, please visit our JourneyCheck page.

For our live service information route map and links to individual station departure boards, please click here.

Other important information:

Wherever possible, we ask customers to purchase tickets ahead of travel using the Chiltern Railways website or App. We recommend that customers travel with barcode e-tickets or consider collecting pre-purchased paper tickets ahead of the day. 

Please note, the area around Wembley Stadium is an alcohol-free zone and the stadium also has a strict bag policy.

Questions & Answers

  • Why are you not running any train services from Birmingham Moor Street, Solihull, Dorridge, Lapworth, Hatton or Warwick?
    • We need to best deploy the colleagues and trains we have available to deal with the expected increase in demand. Additional trains will run from Warwick Parkway to London Marylebone (via Wembley Stadium) for Aston Villa supporters before the match.
  • What if the car park at Warwick Parkway gets full?
    • There is a large car park at Warwick Parkway. If the car park at Warwick Parkway gets full, we will direct supporters down the line to the next available station car parks (Leamington Spa and Banbury), where you can board to head to Wembley.
    • We will be offering free parking for customers at Warwick Parkway, Leamington Spa and Banbury all day on Saturday 26 April.
  • What is your advice for customers?
    • If you are based in the centre or north of Birmingham, we advise that you travel via Birmingham New Street to London Euston with other operators. If you live south of Birmingham, it is recommended that, where possible, you travel to Warwick Parkway and board Chiltern Railways’ services to Wembley.
    • Plan your trip in advance and choose which journey you are taking and which train operator you are travelling with.
  • What are the options after the match?
    • Return travel is likely to be more limited as a result of the later kick off time. Customers are advised to plan ahead, there will be limited rail services in operation from London towards Birmingham post-match. Please look to pre-book your matchday rail travel, and visit the Chiltern Railways website or App to plan your journey and check your return journey home.
    • Please also consider alternative travel modes to Wembley Stadium including coach travel – National Express is an official partner to Wembley Stadium with point-to-point services from across the UK for spectators travelling to Wembley Stadium.
  • What are my options if I am planning to travel on Saturday 26 April and I am not travelling to the football?
    • Our services are expected to be extremely busy on Saturday 26 April. Customers not travelling to the football are advised to check their journeys before travelling and note that no Chiltern train services will run from Birmingham Moor Street, Solihull, Dorridge, Lapworth, Hatton or Warwick.
    • A limited rail replacement service will be in operation from Leamington Spa, calling at Warwick, Stratford-upon-Avon Parkway and Stratford-upon-Avon.
    • West Midlands Railway services will be in operation between Birmingham Moor Street, Solihull and Dorridge.
  • Are other routes affected?
    • To provide resource for the additional trains from Warwick Parkway, the Stratford Upon Avon line will be replaced with a rail replacement bus service.
    • Chiltern Railways will not be operating any services north of Warwick Parkway. Customers heading into Birmingham from the Stourbridge Junction direction, or from Dorridge or Solihull, should use West Midlands Railway services.
    • Due to pre-planned engineering works linked to HS2, a rail replacement bus service will operate from Amersham to Aylesbury Vale Parkway.
    • Rail replacement buses will run between Aylesbury and Princes Risborough (calling at Little Kimble) after 1800.
    • Rail Replacement buses will run between Princes Risborough and Aylesbury (calling at Little Kimble) from 1800 until 2110, after which the last four timetabled trains will run to Aylesbury.
    • Please check journey planners carefully.
  • Step-free access from Warwick Parkway station
    • The lift is out of order between platform 2 and the underpass at Warwick Parkway station. If you are travelling on this date and need step-free access, we recommend you travel from Leamington Spa Station. If you need help with your journey and need to book passenger assistance, please call our dedicated team on 03456 005 165 option 3, then option 3.