Image copyright The FA Image caption The tickets reached a height of 18 miles, according to the FA

An Arsenal fan has bagged a pair of FA Cup final tickets which were sent into the stratosphere ahead of Saturday's match.

The VIP passes were attached to a weather balloon released from Wembley Stadium at about 06:00 BST.

They reached a height of 18 miles (29km), before the balloon burst and they floated by parachute to Broad Oak, Sussex, the Football Association said.

The grandmother of Gunners fan George Lamb later found them in the village.

"When I woke up this morning the idea of going to the FA Cup final hadn't crossed my mind," the 19-year-old said.

'Out-of-this-world match'

"This will be my first time to Wembley and I've got butterflies at the prospect of it."

Image copyright The FA Image caption The VIP tickets were attached to a meteorological balloon that was released from Wembley Stadium

The FA said the meteorological balloon with the tickets attached was released from the north-west London stadium on Wednesday morning with Civil Aviation Authority approval.

Spokeswoman Lucy Roberts-Hartley said: "This season's competition has truly been one to remember on and off the pitch.

"Sending the final pair of tickets into space is a great way to finish the off-pitch adventure, we hope George enjoys an out-of-this-world match on Saturday."

Arsenal face Aston Villa in the match-up at Wembley.

You can follow all the action from Wembley on Saturday 30 May live on the BBC.