The 2005 FAI Cup Final was the final match of the 2005 FAI Cup. The final took place on 4 December 2005 at Lansdowne Road, Dublin in front of a crowd of 24,521 and a television audience which peaked at 285,000. This was the largest attendance at an FAI Cup Final since 1990. The match was originally due to take place at Tolka Park, Dublin however the match was moved to Lansdowne Road in order to accommodate a larger crowd.Drogheda United and Cork City contested the final. Drogheda United were generally seen as underdogs coming into the game but they successfully claimed their first major trophy by winning the match. It was Cork City's first appearance in the final since 1998. Drogheda United last contested the final in 1976. Live coverage of the match was provided on RTÉ Two and RTÉ Radio 1.

Drogheda United entered the competition in the second round along with the other 21 League of Ireland clubs. They did not play against any junior/intermediate teams en route to the final. Their first match was against First Division Limerick FC. Drogheda won the match 2-0, despite threatening play by Limerick, with both goals coming in the second half. Drogheda were drawn away to Dundalk in the third round, however there was some uncertainty regarding the venue for the match. Oriel Park, home of Dundalk, was under development leading up to the game and there was a possibility that the work would not be completed on time. Had this been the case, the match would have been switched to Drogheda's stadium. The match went ahead at Oriel Park, with Drogheda as victors after goals from Mark Leech and Damian Lynch either side of half-time.

At the quarter-final stage, Drogheda were drawn against Bohemians. They won the game 2-1, and in doing so, reached the semi-finals of the competition for the second successive year. Paul Keegan opened the scoring after 2 minutes, with Damian Lynch adding a second after his initial penalty was saved. Bohemians pulled a goal back through Alan O'Keeffe after the goalscorer, Keegan, was sent off shortly after half-time, but it proved to only be a consolation. Bohemians also had a player sent off towards the end of the game. A 2-1 home semi-final victory over Bray Wanderers sent Drogheda into their first FAI Cup Final since 1976. Declan O'Brien opened the scoring in the first half. Jermaine Sandvliet put Drogheda 2-0 up in the second half, only for Bray Wanderers to score 2 minutes later. Despite this setback, Drogheda held on to reach the final.

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