2026–27 EFL Cup

All 92 clubs in the Premier League and English Football League entered the season's EFL Cup. Access was distributed across the top 4 leagues of the English football league system.

There will be a preliminary round before the first one due to the number of teams participating in Europe. This round consists of the two newly promoted sides to 2026–27 League Two – York City and Rochdale – and the two lowest finishers not relegated from 2025–26 League Two, Tranmere Rovers and Crawley Town.^[1]

Summarize Timeline Fact Check

A total of four teams played in the preliminary round: two newly promoted sides from National League (tier 5), and the two lowest non-relegated League Two sides (tier 4). The draw was made on 3 June 2026 by Lee Camp.^[3]

Summarize Timeline Top Qs Fact Check

A total of 70 teams played in the first round: the two winners from the preliminary round, the remaining 20 from League Two (tier 4), 24 from League One (tier 3), and 24 from the Championship (tier 2). The draw for this round was split on a geographical basis into northern and southern sections, where teams were drawn against a team from the same section. The draw was made on 25 June 2026 by Kevin Nolan and Luke Chambers.^[4]

Northern section

Wolverhampton Wanderers (2) v Port Vale (4)

7 August 2026	Wolverhampton Wanderers (2)	3–0	Port Vale (4)	Wolverhampton
19:45 BST	Armstrong 14' André 34' López 43'	Report		Stadium: Molineux Stadium Attendance: 21,360 Referee: David Webb

Middlesbrough (2) v Wrexham (2)

7 August 2026	Middlesbrough (2)	1–0	Wrexham (2)	Middlesbrough
20:00 BST	Lankshear 61'	Report		Stadium: Riverside Stadium Attendance: 18,221 Referee: Will Finnie

Barnsley (3) v Wigan Athletic (3)

8 August 2026	Barnsley (3)	1–1 (6–5 p)	Wigan Athletic (3)	Barnsley
15:00 BST	McGeehan 81'	Report	Costelloe 40'	Stadium: Oakwell Attendance: 4,414 Referee: Richard Eley
	Penalties
	McGeehan Kelly Gale Connell Cleary Earl		Power Carragher Higgins Weir Murray Mellish

Bradford City (3) v Rochdale (4)

8 August 2026	Bradford City (3)	2–0	Rochdale (4)	Bradford
15:00 BST	Swan 45+1' Baldwin 67'	Report		Stadium: Valley Parade Attendance: 6,915 Referee: Declan Brown

Burnley (2) v Notts County (3)

8 August 2026	Burnley (2)	1–1 (4–3 p)	Notts County (3)	Burnley
15:00 BST	Flemming 48'	Report	Roberts 42'	Stadium: Turf Moor Attendance: 10,272 Referee: Thomas Parsons
	Penalties
	Flemming Amdouni Trésor Mejbri Walker		Acquah Campbell Grant Evans Bedeau

Burton Albion (3) v Blackburn Rovers (2)

8 August 2026	Burton Albion (3)	1–2	Blackburn Rovers (2)	Burton upon Trent
15:00 BST	Scutt 14'	Report	Guðjohnsen 81' Fevrier 88'	Stadium: Pirelli Stadium Attendance: 2,839 Referee: Andrew Humphries

Crewe Alexandra (4) v Accrington Stanley (4)

8 August 2026	Crewe Alexandra (4)	2–1	Accrington Stanley (4)	Crewe
15:00 BST	Lankester 6' (pen.) Moore 85'	Report	Rawson 65'	Stadium: Gresty Road Attendance: 2,961 Referee: Ross Martin

Derby County (2) v Lincoln City (2)

8 August 2026	Derby County (2)	1–2	Lincoln City (2)	Derby
15:00 BST	Szmodics 45+1'	Report	House 3' Jefferies 23'	Stadium: Pride Park Stadium Attendance: 11,095 Referee: Joshua Smith

Fleetwood Town (4) v Chesterfield (4)

8 August 2026	Fleetwood Town (4)	1–0	Chesterfield (4)	Fleetwood
15:00 BST	Evans 15'	Report		Stadium: Highbury Stadium Attendance: 1,619 Referee: Martin Coy

Grimsby Town (4) v Blackpool (3)

8 August 2026	Grimsby Town (4)	1–3	Blackpool (3)	Cleethorpes
15:00 BST	Rodgers 90+2'	Report	Ennis 3' Bowler 58' Kouassi 90+5'	Stadium: Blundell Park Attendance: 4,817 Referee: Neil Hair

Preston North End (2) v Huddersfield Town (3)

8 August 2026	Preston North End (2)	1–1 (4–3 p)	Huddersfield Town (3)	Liverpool[5]
15:00 BST	Erabi 90+3'	Report	Balker 38'	Stadium: Goodison Park Attendance: 6,120 Referee: Seb Stockbridge
	Penalties
	Devine Erabi McCann Moran Burgzorg		Ledson Harness Mumba Smith-Sway Taylor

Salford City (4) v Shrewsbury Town (4)

8 August 2026	Salford City (4)	1–1 (3–4 p)	Shrewsbury Town (4)	Salford
15:00 BST	Malcolm 77'	Report	Davison 47'	Stadium: Moor Lane Attendance: 1,936 Referee: Oliver Mackey
	Penalties
	Langstaff Grant Powell Udoh Graydon Odoh Oluwo Turton		Sang Gbodé Turner-Cooke Price Ruffels Hoole Boyle Jude-Boyd

Sheffield Wednesday (3) v Bolton Wanderers (2)

8 August 2026	Sheffield Wednesday (3)	1–0	Bolton Wanderers (2)	Sheffield
15:00 BST	J. Lowe 70'	Report		Stadium: Hillsborough Stadium Attendance: 15,834 Referee: Elliot Bell

Stockport County (3) v Doncaster Rovers (3)

8 August 2026	Stockport County (3)	1–1 (4–5 p)	Doncaster Rovers (3)	Stockport
15:00 BST	Wootton 51'	Report	May 50'	Stadium: Edgeley Park Attendance: 4,974 Referee: Leigh Doughty
	Penalties
	Osborn Andrésson Wootton Fiorini Adigun O'Connell		May Broadbent Bailey Clifton Sterry Adelakun

Stoke City (2) v Oldham Athletic (4)

8 August 2026	Stoke City (2)	2–0	Oldham Athletic (4)	Stoke-on-Trent
15:00 BST	Norburn 48' (o.g.) Boženík 82'	Report		Stadium: Bet365 Stadium Attendance: 10,157 Referee: Edward Duckworth

Rotherham United (4) v West Bromwich Albion (2)

8 August 2026	Rotherham United (4)	1–4	West Bromwich Albion (2)	Rotherham
17:30 BST	Tavares 87'	Report	Morgan 8', 61' Whitwell 24' Myhre 43'	Stadium: New York Stadium Attendance: 4,850 Referee: Tom Reeves

Mansfield Town (3) v Sheffield United (2)

9 August 2026	Mansfield Town (3)	0–3	Sheffield United (2)	Mansfield
16:00 BST		Report	Bamford 4' McGuinness 71' O'Hare 89'	Stadium: Field Mill Attendance: 6,908 Referee: Stephen Martin

Southern section

Bristol City (2) v Walsall (4)

6 August 2026	Bristol City (2)	0–1	Walsall (4)	Bristol
19:45 BST		Report	Pressley 47'	Stadium: Ashton Gate Attendance: 9,992 Referee: Jacob Miles
Note: Fixture was initially scheduled for 7 August, but was rescheduled to avoid a clash with the Bristol International Balloon Fiesta.[6]

Wycombe Wanderers (3) v Stevenage (3)

7 August 2026	Wycombe Wanderers (3)	1–2	Stevenage (3)	High Wycombe
19:45 BST	Henderson 39'	Report	Kemp 27' Magennis 90+5'	Stadium: Adams Park Attendance: 2,510 Referee: Jamie O'Connor

Cambridge United (3) v Barnet (4)

8 August 2026	Cambridge United (3)	2–1	Barnet (4)	Cambridge
13:00 BST	Knight 52' Heath 57'	Report	Tshimanga 49'	Stadium: Abbey Stadium Attendance: 3,521 Referee: Carl Brook

Queens Park Rangers (2) v Millwall (2)

8 August 2026	Queens Park Rangers (2)	1–1 (0–2 p)	Millwall (2)	Shepherd's Bush
14:00 BST	Sykes 86' (o.g.)	Report	Cundle 53'	Stadium: Loftus Road Attendance: 9,759 Referee: Matt Donohue
	Penalties
	Chair Vale Saitō Poku		Cooper Sykes Neghli Arconte

AFC Wimbledon (3) v Newport County (4)

8 August 2026	AFC Wimbledon (3)	1–1 (5–4 p)	Newport County (4)	Wimbledon
15:00 BST	Maycock 90+7'	Report	Bamba 71'	Stadium: Plough Lane Attendance: 3,393 Referee: Paul Howard
	Penalties
	Browne Stockley Tilley Hippolyte Seddon		Garner Norman Brennan Biggins Smith

Bristol Rovers (4) v Peterborough United (3)

8 August 2026	Bristol Rovers (4)	0–1	Peterborough United (3)	Bristol
15:00 BST		Report	Leonard 19' (pen.)	Stadium: Memorial Stadium Attendance: 4,810 Referee: David Rock

Bromley (3) v Reading (3)

8 August 2026	Bromley (3)	1–1 (4–5 p)	Reading (3)	Bromley
15:00 BST	Cheek 33'	Report	Stokes 14'	Stadium: Hayes Lane Attendance: 3,496 Referee: Craig Hicks
	Penalties
	Adeboyejo McKiernan Ifill Conteh Archer		Wing Savage Marriott Fraser Williams

Cardiff City (2) v Swindon Town (4)

8 August 2026	Cardiff City (2)	3–2	Swindon Town (4)	Cardiff
15:00 BST	Salech 29' (pen.), 43' Moylan 77'	Report	Osho 9' (o.g.) Glatzel 62'	Stadium: Cardiff City Stadium Attendance: 6,168 Referee: Gavin Ward

Gillingham (4) v Luton Town (3)

8 August 2026	Gillingham (4)	0–3	Luton Town (3)	Gillingham
15:00 BST		Report	Wells 43' Benagr 59' Kodua 78'	Stadium: Priestfield Stadium Attendance: 4,015 Referee: Stephen Parkinson

Leicester City (3) v Northampton Town (4)

8 August 2026	Leicester City (3)	1–0	Northampton Town (4)	Leicester
15:00 BST	Okoli 15'	Report		Stadium: King Power Stadium Attendance: 9,792 Referee: Oliver Yates

Leyton Orient (3) v Oxford United (3)

8 August 2026	Leyton Orient (3)	2–0	Oxford United (3)	Leyton
15:00 BST	Mitchell 85' El Mizouni 88'	Report		Stadium: Brisbane Road Attendance: 3,783 Referee: Alex Chilowicz

Norwich City (2) v Milton Keynes Dons (3)

8 August 2026	Norwich City (2)	4–1	Milton Keynes Dons (3)	Norwich
15:00 BST	Touré 1' Slimane 7' Chrisene 43' Brooks 59'	Report	Wintle 56'	Stadium: Carrow Road Attendance: 20,056 Referee: Elliot Swallow

Swansea City (2) v Birmingham City (2)

8 August 2026	Swansea City (2)	0–1	Birmingham City (2)	Swansea
15:00 BST		Report	Priske 44'	Stadium: Swansea.com Stadium Attendance: 11,283 Referee: Ruebyn Ricardo

Watford (2) v Crawley Town (4)

8 August 2026	Watford (2)	1–0	Crawley Town (4)	Watford
15:00 BST	Bola 90+9'	Report		Stadium: Vicarage Road Attendance: 6,907 Referee: Harry Wager

West Ham United (2) v Portsmouth (2)

8 August 2026	West Ham United (2)	3–1	Portsmouth (2)	Stratford
15:00 BST	Castellanos 43', 50' Bowen 45'	Report	Segečić 33'	Stadium: London Stadium Attendance: 53,369 Referee: Adam Herczeg

Cheltenham Town (4) v Charlton Athletic (2)

8 August 2026	Cheltenham Town (4)	1–3	Charlton Athletic (2)	Cheltenham
17:30 BST	Miller 55'	Report	Godden 22' Carey 24' Campbell 37'	Stadium: Whaddon Road Attendance: 3,119 Referee: Alan Dale

Colchester United (4) v Southampton (2)

8 August 2026	Colchester United (4)	0–2	Southampton (2)	Colchester
17:30 BST		Report	Larin 72' Akachukwu 90+2'	Stadium: Colchester Community Stadium Attendance: 5,822 Referee: Isaac Searle

Plymouth Argyle (3) v Exeter City (4)

10 August 2026	Plymouth Argyle (3)	2–0	Exeter City (4)	Plymouth
20:00 BST	Hartridge 90+2' Pepple 90+4'	Report		Stadium: Home Park Attendance: 16,755 Referee: Dean Whitestone

Summarize Timeline Top Qs Fact Check

A total of 46 teams played in the second round: 35 winners from the first round, and the 11 Premier League clubs not involved in European competitions. The draw for this round was split on a geographical basis into northern and southern sections, where teams were drawn against a team from the same section. The draw was made on 10 August 2026 by Jobi McAnuff and Jamie Mackie.^[7]

Northern section

Doncaster Rovers (3) v Middlesbrough (2)

25 August 2026	Doncaster Rovers (3)	1–3	Middlesbrough (2)	Doncaster
19:30 BST	Hutchinson 90+2'	Report	Joseph 34' Lankshear 78' Sarmiento 87'	Stadium: Eco-Power Stadium Attendance: 6,883 Referee: Edward Duckworth

Barnsley (3) v Crewe Alexandra (4)

25 August 2026	Barnsley (3)	3–2	Crewe Alexandra (4)	Barnsley
19:45 BST	Cleary 29' Noslin 31' O'Keeffe 38'	Report	Thibaut 21' Ewusi 89'	Stadium: Oakwell Attendance: 3,002 Referee: Leigh Doughty

Blackburn Rovers (2) v Sheffield United (2)

25 August 2026	Blackburn Rovers (2)	1–2	Sheffield United (2)	Blackburn
19:45 BST	Afolayan 55'	Report	Cannon 20' Donovan 81'	Stadium: Ewood Park Attendance: 6,826 Referee: David Webb

Blackpool (3) v Lincoln City (2)

25 August 2026	Blackpool (3)	1–4	Lincoln City (2)	Blackpool
19:45 BST	Clarkson 45'	Report	Olaofe 36' Bayliss 53' Street 55' Elder 77'	Stadium: Bloomfield Road Attendance: 2,407 Referee: Harry Wager

Fleetwood Town (4) v Shrewsbury Town (4)

25 August 2026	Fleetwood Town (4)	4–0	Shrewsbury Town (4)	Fleetwood
19:45 BST	Boyle 8' (o.g.) Evans 28', 35' Davies 90'	Report		Stadium: Highbury Stadium Attendance: 1,066 Referee: Thomas Parsons

Sheffield Wednesday (3) v Wolverhampton Wanderers (2)

25 August 2026	Sheffield Wednesday (3)	0–2	Wolverhampton Wanderers (2)	Sheffield
19:45 BST		Report	Swinkels 3' (o.g.) Olagunju 45+1'	Stadium: Hillsborough Stadium Attendance: 13,586 Referee: Ben Speedie

Stoke City (2) v Hull City (1)

25 August 2026	Stoke City (2)	1–1 (4–5 p)	Hull City (1)	Stoke-on-Trent
19:45 BST	Boženík 39'	Report	Dowell 45'	Stadium: Bet365 Stadium Attendance: 7,141 Referee: John Busby
	Penalties
	Thomas Gallagher Lawal Hirst Soumaré		Morita McNair Stroud Millar Belloumi

Nottingham Forest (1) v Leeds United (1)

25 August 2026	Nottingham Forest (1)	0–2	Leeds United (1)	West Bridgford
20:00 BST		Report	James 50' Justin 75'	Stadium: City Ground Attendance: 24,542 Referee: Andrew Kitchen

Bradford City (3) v Burnley (2)

26 August 2026	Bradford City (3)	0–0 (4–2 p)	Burnley (2)	Bradford
19:45 BST		Report		Stadium: Valley Parade Attendance: 19,686 Referee: Martin Coy
	Penalties
	Sarcevic Gillesphey Touray Phillips		Flemming Amdouni Larsen Edwards

Newcastle United (1) v West Bromwich Albion (2)

26 August 2026	Newcastle United (1)	3–2	West Bromwich Albion (2)	Newcastle upon Tyne
19:45 BST	Touré 38' Barnes 48', 81'	Report	Price 19', 77' (pen.)	Stadium: St James' Park Attendance: 51,405 Referee: Bobby Madley

Preston North End (2) v Everton (1)

26 August 2026	Preston North End (2)	0–4	Everton (1)	Preston
20:00 BST		Report	Barry 25', 59', 70' Johnson 72'	Stadium: Deepdale Attendance: 16,834 Referee: Tony Harrington

Southern section

Cardiff City (2) v Norwich City (2)

25 August 2026	Cardiff City (2)	1–2	Norwich City (2)	Cardiff
19:00 BST	Salech 90+3'	Report	Kvistgaarden 25' Crnac 78'	Stadium: Cardiff City Stadium Attendance: 5,432 Referee: James Bell

Cambridge United (3) v Millwall (2)

25 August 2026	Cambridge United (3)	0–1	Millwall (2)	Cambridge
19:45 BST		Report	Cooper 9'	Stadium: Abbey Stadium Attendance: 5,363 Referee: Paul Howard

Ipswich Town (1) v Leicester City (3)

25 August 2026	Ipswich Town (1)	3–1	Leicester City (3)	Ipswich
19:45 BST	Egeli 62' Núñez 71', 90+1'	Report	Aluko 67'	Stadium: Portman Road Attendance: 21,559 Referee: Lewis Smith

Plymouth Argyle (3) v Coventry City (1)

25 August 2026	Plymouth Argyle (3)	2–4	Coventry City (1)	Plymouth
19:45 BST	Irow 21' Amaechi 54'	Report	Awoniyi 3' Rudoni 5' Mason-Clark 67' Torp 78'	Stadium: Home Park Attendance: 14,210 Referee: Elliott Swallow

Southampton (2) v West Ham United (2)

25 August 2026	Southampton (2)	1–4	West Ham United (2)	Southampton
19:45 BST	Scienza 10'	Report	Ajala 41', 53' Castellanos 75' Bowen 84'	Stadium: St Mary's Stadium Attendance: 15,867 Referee: Ruebyn Ricardo

Stevenage (3) v Reading (3)

25 August 2026	Stevenage (3)	0–3	Reading (3)	Stevenage
19:45 BST		Report	Brown 9' Lane 24' Williams 85'	Stadium: Broadhall Way Attendance: 2,013 Referee: Richard Eley

Walsall (4) v Leyton Orient (3)

25 August 2026	Walsall (4)	0–0 (5–6 p)	Leyton Orient (3)	Walsall
19:45 BST		Report		Stadium: Bescot Stadium Attendance: 2,679 Referee: Andrew Humphries
	Penalties
	Simper Clarke Hancock Sodje Pressley Crew Skura		Kabia Hayden Archibald El Mizouni Obiero Stevens Olowu

Watford (2) v Peterborough United (3)

25 August 2026	Watford (2)	1–5	Peterborough United (3)	Watford
19:45 BST	Doumbia 73'	Report	Clarridge 10' (o.g.) Leonard 23', 51' Shofowoke 55' Jones 64'	Stadium: Vicarage Road Attendance: 7,978 Referee: Isaac Searle

Birmingham City (2) v Brentford (1)

25 August 2026	Birmingham City (2)	1–6	Brentford (1)	Birmingham
20:00 BST	Gray 28'	Report	Wilson 6' Hickey 35' Collins 40', 77' Damsgaard 70' Thiago 73'	Stadium: St Andrew's Attendance: 17,722 Referee: Tim Robinson

Tottenham Hotspur (1) v Charlton Athletic (2)

26 August 2026	Tottenham Hotspur (1)	5–1	Charlton Athletic (2)	Tottenham
19:45 BST	Moore 41' Solanke 45' Danso 67' Sávio 82' Davies 85'	Report	Jones 87'	Stadium: Tottenham Hotspur Stadium Attendance: 49,008 Referee: Adam Herczeg

Chelsea (1) v Luton Town (3)

27 August 2026	Chelsea (1)	2–0	Luton Town (3)	Fulham
19:30 BST	Welbeck 50' Odoffin 79' (o.g.)	Report		Stadium: Stamford Bridge Attendance: 32,210 Referee: Elliot Bell

Fulham (1) v AFC Wimbledon (3)

27 August 2026	Fulham (1)	3–0	AFC Wimbledon (3)	Fulham
20:00 BST	Smith Rowe 37' Muniz 42' García 90+3'	Report		Stadium: Craven Cottage Attendance: 17,714 Referee: Anthony Backhouse

Summarize Timeline Fact Check

32 teams play in the third round: the 23 second round winners, and the nine Premier League teams involved in European competition. The draw was made on 26 August 2026 by Jermaine Beckford and Jamie Redknapp.^[8]

In order to avoid scheduling issues, the eight clubs playing in the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League could not be drawn against each other in the EFL Cup third round. There was a "pre-draw" to decide whether each of the eight clubs would play home or away. Eight clubs were then drawn from the remaining 24 to play against the eight Champions or Europa League sides. The remainder of the draw was open as usual.^[9]

Fleetwood Town, playing in EFL League Two, are the sole fourth tier side in this round.

The 16 third round winners will be drawn to play each other in the fourth round. The draw will take place on 16 September 2026 after the Manchester United–Brighton & Hove Albion game is concluded; Pien Meulensteen, Jamie Redknapp and Ashley Young will host and perform the draw.^[10]

The eight games will take place in the week commencing 26 October 2026.^[10]

There will be two or three EFL League One (tier 3) clubs in the fourth round, and possibly one EFL League Two (tier 4) side.^[11]