Editing FA Trophy (section)

==Format==
The competition is a [[knockout tournament]] with pairings drawn at random. Since the [[2021-22 in English football|2021–22 season]] all drawn games are immediately settled via a penalty shootout. This was introduced to ease fixture congestion.<ref>{{cite web|url =https://www.thefa.com/news/2021/jul/02/|title=Format for FA Competitions in 2021/21 Season|access-date=18 December 2021}}</ref> 

The Semi-Finals follow the same procedure as the preceding rounds: hosted by the team drawn first out of the hat and decided by a penalty shootout if the scores remain level after 90 minutes.<ref name=":0" />

The Final is held at [[Wembley Stadium]]. Thirty minutes of extra-time is played if the scores are level at full-time. A penalty shootout is used if the scores further remain level at the end of extra-time.

As of 2022–23 and the recent non–league restructuring, the competition has featured a maximum of 320 teams representing all clubs from levels 5-8 on the [[English football league system]]. The competition features three qualifying rounds (three less than the FA Cup) and eight rounds proper (the same as the FA Cup). Teams from Step 4 (level 8) enter at the first qualifying round stage, those from Step 3 (level 7) at the third qualifying, those from Step 2 (level 6) at the second round proper, and those from Step 1 (level 5) at the third round proper (similar to the FA Cup).<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |date=1 July 2022 |title=Rules of The FA Challenge Trophy 2022–23 |url=https://www.thefa.com/-/media/thefacom-new/files/competitions/2022-23/fa-trophy/rules-of-the-fa-challenge-trophy-2022-23.ashx |access-date=25 August 2022 |website=thefa.com |publisher=The Football Association |archive-date=21 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220821165555/https://www.thefa.com/-/media/thefacom-new/files/competitions/2022-23/fa-trophy/rules-of-the-fa-challenge-trophy-2022-23.ashx |url-status=live }}</ref>

The months in which rounds are played are typical, with exact dates subject to each calendar. The FA pays a cumulative prize fund that rises round-by-round, with exact figures subject to each new edition. See [[:Category:FA Trophy seasons|the list of FA Trophy seasons]] for specific details. 
{| class="wikitable"
!Round<ref name=":0" />
!Month
!Leagues entering this round<ref name=":0" />
!New entries this
round
!Winners from
previous round
!Number of fixtures
|-
| colspan="4" |'''Qualifying Competition<ref name=":0" />'''
|
|
|-
|First Round
| rowspan="2" |September
|[[National League System#The system|Step 4]] clubs
|160
|''none''
|80
|-
|Second Round
| colspan="2" |''none''
|80
|40
|-
|Third Round
|October
|[[National League System#The system|Step 3]] clubs
|88
|40
|64
|-
| colspan="4" |'''Competition Proper'''<ref name=":0" />
|
|
|-
|First Round
|October/November
| colspan="2" |''none''
|64
|32
|-
|Second Round
|November
|[[National League System#The system|Step 2]] clubs
|48
|32
|40
|-
|Third Round
|December
|[[National League System#The system|Step 1]] clubs
|24
|40
|32
|-
|Fourth Round
|January
| colspan="2" rowspan="5" |''none''
|32
|16
|-
|Fifth Round
|February
|16
|8
|-
|Sixth Round
|March
|8
|4
|-
|Semi-Finals
|April
|4
|2
|-
|Final
|May
|2
|1
|}