The draw was held on Sunday 29 November 2009 at Wembley Stadium.
Premier League and
Football League Championship teams entered at this stage, joining the winners from the previous round and completing the entrants. The majority of fixtures took place on 2 and 3 January 2010, with
snow postponing several matches until mid-January.
Barrow,
Forest Green Rovers,
Luton Town and
York City from the
Conference National (5th tier) were the only non-league teams left at this stage, but none made it through to the fourth round.
Manchester United were knocked out in the third round for the first time since they lost to
AFC Bournemouth in
1984, when they lost to third-tier
rivals Leeds United. It was also Manchester United's first defeat to a lower league side since defeat at Bournemouth. They were joined by
rivals and fellow 'Big Four' club
Liverpool, who lost at
home to second-flight
Reading in a replay. † – After
extra time ==Fourth round proper==