Place in third round up for grabs against non-league opponents
Reading will look to book their place in the next round of the world's oldest cup competition when they take on National League side Eastleigh.
The magic of the cup will be all around for this second round tie, which kicks-off on Sunday in front of the ITV cameras.
The Royals have been in blistering form in cup competitions this season, scoring 28 goals in our six matches so far.
Below is all the key information you need ahead of the game.
TICKETS
This fixture has sold out - please do not travel to the stadium without a ticket.
AWAY FANS GUIDE
Information for those going to the Silverlake Stadium, include travel and parking, can be found in Eastleigh's guide below:
ROYALSTV
Please note carefully that Emirates FA Cup fixtures are not available for live video streaming on RoyalsTV. Therefore there will be no Video Match Passes available to purchase, and it will not be available to International Month or Season Video Pass holders.
The game will be available to stream live on both ITV1 ad ITVX.
FA Cup fixtures are also not available to purchase as Audio Match Passes. However commentary will be available to any supporters who have subscriptions to Month or Season Audio Passes (both UK & Ireland and International).
See our available subscriptions
REMINDER
The support of our fans has been outstanding over recent times, and it is recognised by all players and staff.
Reading Football Club are responsible for fan behaviour both home and away. As stated before, we must remind fans that it is illegal to enter the field of play or to throw missiles of any description onto the pitch.
We are grateful for the voice of our fans, but any protests which disrupt a matchday will result in penalties and fines towards the club – which directly negatively impacts all of us.
Therefore, we plead with our supporters to be vocal, yet support us by not interrupting play.
Furthermore, we must remind supporters that carrying illegal items or entering the field play may result in a criminal record or a banning order.
Thank you for your support.
THE OPPOSITION
In a tightly-contested National League this season, the Spitfires find themselves at the right end of the table, and can certainly consider themselves as contesting the play-off places.
Although currently sat in 11th, they are only five points off the play-offs, having picked up eight wins, eight defeats, and six draws in their 22 league games this campaign.
A run of back-to-back wins was ended on Saturday by league leaders Chesterfield, with the team heading back to Hampshire empty-handed despite a spirited performance in the 3-2 loss.
This marks the fifth time the side have reached this stage of the FA Cup, making it this far after wins over Dover Athletic, and a 5-1 thrashing of Boreham Wood in the First Round.
ONE TO WATCH: PAUL MCCALLUM
McCallum returned to Eastleigh in the summer after a four-year absence from the club, and has certainly made a positive impact since he came back.
He is the side's, and the National League's, current top-scorer with 16 goals from his 17 appearances this season, including four in his last three league matches.
His first spell with the club came between 2017 and 2019, and was equally as profilic, with the striker graabbing 35 goals from his 67 appearances, and grabbed a goal in a pre-season friendly against the Royals in 2018.
Loan spells with Barnet and Chesterfield, as well as a move to Dagenham and Redbridge followed, before rediscovering his form with a return to the Silverlake Stadium.
HEAD-TO-HEAD
This fixture marks the first-ever competitive meeting between the two sides.
The two teams did go up against each other in the already mentioned pre-season friendly, where the Spitfires came out 2-1 winners, with Leandro Bacuna on the scoresheet for the Royals that day.
Andy Yiadom is the only player who featured that day to remain at the club.
REF WATCH
Lewis Smith will be taking charge of this fixture, marking the first Reading game of his career.
An experienced referee with over 160 games under his belt, Smith has overseen games in the Championship, League One, and League Two this season.
This will be the sixth Eastleigh match he has refereed.
Conor Farrell and Scott Williams will be running the line, with Ben Atkinson acting as the fourth official.