Manchester, Liverpool mayors want FA Cup semifinal to be moved from London

Manchester and Liverpool have asked the Football Association (FA) to move next month's FA Cup semi-final between Manchester City and Liverpool to be moved from Wembley due to a lack of train services to London that weekend. City and Liverpool will meet over the Easter weekend but the mayors said the match would be difficult for fans to attend as engineering work scheduled for April 16-17 means there will be no direct trains to London from Manchester and Merseyside. "This leaves tens of thousands of fans from all over our region in an unfair position, as supporters' groups from both clubs have made clear today," Mayors Andy Burnham and Steve Rotheram said in a joint letter to the FA Chair Debbie Hewitt. "Without quick, direct trains, many people will be left with no option but to drive, fly, make overly complex rail journeys or book overnight accommodation. "We believe the most obvious solution is to move this game to a more accessible stadium and offer to work constructively with you to make that happen," added the letter sent on Tuesday.

Read AlsoFA to work with Liverpool and Manchester City to help fans travel for FA Cup semis

England's Football Association (FA) said it will work with Liverpool and Manchester City to help their fans attend next month's FA Cup semi-final at Wembley amid complaints about a lack of train services that weekend.

The mayors added that rising fuel prices would burden fans with excessive costs while there were also "significant logistical and safety considerations" with thousands of fans converging on the M6 motorway. "More than 64,000 travelling supporters will be forced on to the roads, which will already be overburdened with bank holiday traffic," supporters groups for both clubs said in a