EFL Cup 2025/26: Fixtures, results, round dates, full schedule, TV channel and live stream details

The EFL Cup 2025/26 features seven potential rounds of matches in the main competition for teams in the Championship, League One and League Two and a maximum of six for Premier League clubs.

Newcastle won the EFL Cup for the first time in 2024/25, beating Premier League champions Liverpool in the final at Wembley Stadium.

The Reds are the most successful team in EFL Cup history with 10 titles, followed by Manchester City with eight and Manchester United with six.

101GreatGoals.com has all the latest fixtures and results from the 2025/26 EFL Cup, round dates and how to watch on TV and live stream.

EFL Cup dates 2025/26: When are the Carabao Cup round dates?

Round one starts during the second week of the EFL season. A new preliminary round also starts in late July between the two clubs promoted from the National League last season and the teams who finished 21st and 22nd in League Two.

There will be split weeks in round three for clubs in the Champions League and Europa League.

EFL Cup preliminary round

Week commencing August 4, 2025

EFL Cup round one

August 11, 2025

EFL Cup round two

August 25, 2025

EFL Cup round three

September 15 and 22, 2025

EFL Cup round four

October 27, 2025

EFL Cup round five

December 15, 2025

EFL Cup semi-final first leg

January 12, 2026

EFL Cup semi-final second leg

February 2, 2026

EFL Cup final

Sunday, March 22, 2026

EFL Cup: When do Premier League teams join the Carabao Cup?

The nine Premier League teams involved in European competition will join the EFL Cup third round in September.

The 11 other clubs will join a round earlier, during the week of August 25.

EFL Cup fixtures, results 2025/26: Schedule, latest draw

All matches start at 19:45 UK time unless otherwise stated.

EFL Cup preliminary round fixtures, results

Tuesday, July 29

Barnet v Newport County (19:30)

Tuesday, August 5

Accrington Stanley v Oldham Athletic

EFL Cup round one fixtures, results

Tuesday, August 12

Barrow v Preston North End (19:30)

Grimsby Town v Shrewsbury Town

Blackpool v Port Vale

Salford City v Rotherham

Harrogate Town v Lincoln City

Tranmere Rovers v Burton Albion

Stockport County v Crewe Alexandra (19:30)

Wrexham v Hull City

Stoke City v Walsall

Accrington or Oldhamv Peterborough United (TBC)

Blackburn Rovers v Bradford City

Middlesbrough v Doncaster Rovers (19:30)

West Brom v Derby County

Chesterfield v Mansfield Town

Wigan Athletic v Notts County

Coventry City v Luton Town

Bristol City v MK Dons

Bromley v Ipswich Town (20:00)

Bristol Rovers v Cambridge United

Leyton Orient v Wycombe Wanderers

Watford v Norwich City

Charlton Athletic v Stevenage

Oxford United v Colchester United

Barnet or Newport County v Millwall (TBC)

Cardiff City v Swindon Town

Gillingham v AFC Wimbledon

Northampton Town v Southampton

Plymouth Argyle v QPR

Swansea City v Crawley Town (19:00)

Portsmouth v Reading

Wednesday, August 13

Barnsley v Fleetwood Town

Bolton Wanderers v Sheffield Wednesday

Cheltenham Town v Exeter

Huddersfield Town v Leicester City

Birmingham City v Sheffield United (20:00)

EFL Cup TV channel: How to watch the Carabao Cup

All EFL Cup matches will be available to watch on Sky Sports or Sky Sports+ as part of a deal between the league and the broadcaster to show more than 1,000 of the 1,891 games across the EFL, EFL Cup and Bristol Street Motors Trophy.

Via Now TV, Sky Sports costs £14.99 for a day membership, £26 a month for a six-month membership or £34.99 a month with no contract.

EFL Cup live stream: Watch the Carabao Cup online

Sky Sports memberships include access to all 12 live Sky Sports channels and Sky Sports+, which offers live streams and a dedicated channel.

Fans can watch online and on the move with the SkyGO app, which is available on a vast range of devices including smart TVs, gaming consoles, set-top boxes and mobile devices.

Do the EFL Cup winners qualify for Europe?

The EFL Cup winners receive a place in the play-off stage of the UEFA Conference League unless they qualify through another route for European competition.

Newcastle were an example of the rule in action in 2024/25, instead qualifying for the Champions League through their league position.

That meant their Conference League play-off place went to the next-highest ranked team who had not qualified for European competition via their league position.

Do EFL Cup ties go to extra time, replays and penalties?

Should they finish level after 90 minutes, EFL Cup ties go straight to penalties until the semi-finals, which take place over two legs.

If the scoreline is level after the second leg, extra time and – if necessary – penalties are used to separate teams.

The final is a one-off match at Wembley Stadium, with extra time and penalties used if required.

Liverpool beat Chelsea 11-10 on penalties in the 2021/22 final and edged the same fixture after extra time in 2023/24 through Virgil van Dijk’s 118th-minute winner.

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