Paul Dawson and Isaac Buckley-Ricketts got the goals for the Silkmen at Moss Rose, before Yeremy Pino pulled one back for Palace late on.
Macclesfield fans poured onto the pitch to celebrate the famous victory over their Premier League opponents who won last year’s trophy by beating Manchester City 1-0 at Wembley in May.
Saturday’s result is the biggest shock in history in terms of league places between victors and the defeated – 117 places between the two. The previous biggest gap was 108.
It was the first time the holders had lost to non-league opposition since Palace themselves beat Wolves back in 1909 while in the Southern League.
Macclesfield’s captain Paul Dawson headed his side in front two minutes before half-time, and when asked about his header by BBC Sport, said “I do get in quite a few every week.”
In an illustration of their lowly status, he revealed he had helped clear snow from the pitch before Tuesday’s league game against Radcliffe FC.
Palace manager Oliver Glasner congratulated the winners, admitting: “We lost and we deserved to lose”, adding he had “no explanation” for the result.
“In these kind of games, you don’t need tactics, you don’t need a manager, you just need to show what you can do, but we didn’t do that today.”
Formerly known as Macclesfield Town, the Cheshire club was wound up in 2020 with debts of more than £500,000 and reformed as Macclesfield FC the following year, playing in the North West Counties Football League (NWCFL) Premier Division.
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