Arsenal have been slapped with a sanction by the FA after a ticketing dispute from last season's FA Cup clash with Manchester United.
The Professional Game Board has hit the Gunners with a suspended £500,000 fine for breaking competition rules during their third-round tie in January.
The north London club fell foul of FA Cup regulations when they failed to give United their full ticket entitlement for their fixture, held at the Emirates Stadium in January of this year.
Instead of the required 9,000 seats, Arsenal only provided 8,000 to their visitors, leaving around 1,000 seats empty on the day.
Arsenal's justification centred on safety worries about the upper tier at their 60,000-capacity ground.
The Safety Advisory Group, which includes club representatives, council officials and emergency services personnel, backed the decision to keep away fans out of that section.
Arsenal have been slapped with a sanction by the FA after a ticketing dispute from last season's FA Cup clash with Manchester United | PAThe issue arose because FA Cup rules state visiting teams should receive up to 15 per cent of available tickets, with a maximum of 9,000.
That's considerably more generous than Premier League matches, where away supporters typically get around 3,000 seats.
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Man Utd goalkeeper Altay Bayindir was the hero on the day, as the visitors progressed to the next round
| GETTYUnited's allocation of just under 8,000 tickets represented only 13 per cent of the Emirates capacity, falling short of what they were entitled to claim.
United weren't happy about the situation and made several complaints to the FA before the match took place.
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They even came up with creative solutions for those empty seats, offering to carefully select families and children connected to their charity programmes as recipients.
When that didn't work, they suggested giving the tickets to emergency service workers and people involved in grassroots football projects. Arsenal turned down both proposals.
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The Emirates Stadium holds 60,704 fans
|PA
The whole saga dragged on for nine months before the FA finally delivered their verdict.
The fine won't kick in immediately though.
Arsenal can avoid paying the hefty sum if they prove they can meet the ticketing requirements for next season's FA Cup third round and stick to the rules for any further rounds this campaign.
The FA's statement made it clear that Arsenal must confirm their ability to comply with the regulations going forward. It's a warning shot that gives the Gunners a chance to sort out their ticketing arrangements without facing immediate financial punishment.
On the day, United had the last laugh too, as they progressed to the next round of the prestigious competition, beating the hosts on on penalties after a 1-1 draw in normal time.
Arsenal last won the FA Cup in 2020, under the stewardship of Mikel Arteta, and represents their last major trophy, other than a Community Shield victory over Manchester City in 2023.