Carabao Cup

History and evolution

– Origins: Conceived by EFL secretary Alan Hardaker within his “Pattern for Football” reform plan, the League Cup launched in 1960/61 as a midweek competition. The first ties were played on 26 September 1960, and Aston Villa won the inaugural two-legged final against Rotherham United.
– Participation: Entry was initially optional and several top-flight clubs declined; television revenue, the promise of a Wembley final, and the award of a European place helped secure universal participation by 1967.
– Finals and venues: Finals were two-legged from 1961 to 1966. From 1967 the showpiece became a single match at Wembley; while Wembley was rebuilt, the final moved to Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium from 2001 to 2007, then returned to Wembley in 2008.
– The trophy: The original silverware was commissioned by league president Joe Richards in support of Hardaker’s plan, with Richards’ name engraved on it.
– Sponsorship eras: Title sponsors have included Milk Marketing Board, Littlewoods, Rumbelows, Coca-Cola, Worthington, Carling and Capital One; it was the EFL Cup in 2016/17, then became the Carabao Cup from 2017/18. A 2023 extension runs through 2026/27, making Carabao the longest-serving naming partner.
– Award milestone: The Alan Hardaker Trophy for player of the match in the final was introduced in 1990.

Competition format

– Entrants & entry points: 92 clubs from the Premier League and EFL take part. All EFL clubs start in Round One; Premier League clubs not in Europe join in Round Two; clubs in UEFA competitions are exempt until Round Three. For 2024/25 and 2025/26, Round Three is seeded to help avoid UEFA clashes.
– Regionalisation: Rounds One and Two are drawn in North and South sections. From Round Three the draw is national.
– 2025/26 adjustment: A one-off Preliminary Round reduced the field so every Premier League club in Europe could enter at Round Three. Ties were Barnet v Newport County and Accrington Stanley v Oldham Athletic, scheduled for 29 July and 5 August 2025.
– Draw & venues: In Rounds 1–5 the first club drawn plays at home; the semi-finals are over two legs with the first-drawn club at home first; the final is a single match on neutral ground.
– Tiebreakers: In Rounds 1–5 there is no extra time; ties level after 90 minutes go straight to penalties. If the semi-final aggregate is level after 90 minutes of the second leg, and in the final, extra time is played then penalties if required. Away goals do not apply in the semi-finals.
– Var usage: VAR is used in the semi-finals, and the EFL trialled in-stadium referee announcements in 2024/25.
– Special cases: If exemptions leave a number other than 64 for Round Three, the EFL may create byes or a preliminary round

Calendar

– Preliminary round: Week commencing 4 August 2025
– Round one: Week commencing 11 August 2025
– Round two: Week commencing 25 August 2025
– Round three: Split across weeks commencing 15 September and 22 September 2025 to accommodate UEFA clubs
– Round four: Week commencing 27 October 2025
– Round five: Week commencing 15 December 2025
– Semi-finals: First leg week commencing 12 January 2026; second leg week commencing 2 February 2026
– Final: Sunday, 22 March 2026, Wembley Stadium

European qualification

– Winners earn a place in the UEFA Conference League play-off round for the following season.
– If the winners have already qualified for the Champions League or Europa League, the Conference League spot is given to the next-highest Premier League team that has not already qualified for European competition. It does not go to the runners-up of the competition.

Records and milestones

– Most titles (club): Liverpool – 10 (1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1995, 2001, 2003, 2012, 2022, 2024).
– Most consecutive titles: Four in a row – Liverpool (1981–84) and Manchester City (2018–21).
– Most titles (manager): Pep Guardiola (2018–21, Man City), José Mourinho (2005, 2007, 2015 Chelsea; 2017 Man United), Sir Alex Ferguson (1992, 2006, 2009, 2010 Man United), Brian Clough (1978, 1979, 1989, 1990 Nottingham Forest) – four each.
– Recent champions: 2024 – Liverpool 1–0 Chelsea (aet), 25 February, Wembley; 2025 – Newcastle United 2–1 Liverpool, 16 March, Wembley (Newcastle’s first EFL Cup title).

Commercial and media

– UK broadcast: Sky Sports is the EFL’s UK partner on a five-year deal from 2024/25 to 2028/29, with all 93 Carabao Cup ties available live across Sky Sports channels and Sky Sports+. Non-subscribers can stream via NOW
– Free-to-air simulcast: ITV shows a select number of matches free-to-air under a sublicensing deal that began with the January 2025 semi-finals and runs to the end of 2026/27, alongside Sky’s coverage.
– International coverage: The EFL lists overseas broadcast partners; in the UK all Carabao Cup matches are available on Sky Sports or Sky Sports+. Fans outside the UK should check local listings.
– Matchday revenue split: After approved expenses, net gate receipts are split 45 percent to each club and 10 percent to the competition pool; for semi-finals and the final, up to 6.3 percent is retained by the EFL before that split applies
– Expenses and reimbursements (headline rates): Visiting clubs can claim travel (e.g., rail or air up to specified per-person caps, or coach hire) and limited hotel costs; in the final, each club can also claim travel plus one-night hotel. If receipts do not cover expenses, losses are shared, with the EFL empowered to reimburse at its discretion.

Sportmonks and the Carabao cup

Sportmonks supplies Carabao Cup data through its Football API, covering fixtures, livescores and other match data you can query by date, match or competition.

For a fast front end, our Football Widgets let you embed livescore and match views with minimal code.
If you are building a richer match hub, their guides show how to assemble a page with events, lineups and statistics using includes.

 You can add forecasting and betting context via the Predictions API and the Premium Odds Feed.

Power your Carabao Cup coverage with Sportmonks

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