Carabao Cup Second Round Fixtures Announced
The draw for the second round of the Carabao Cup has set up several notable encounters, with Chelsea scheduled to play League One Luton at Stamford Bridge. Meanwhile, Tottenham will host Championship side Charlton. The fixtures are set to take place in the midweek of the week commencing Monday, 24 August.
Among the other significant matchups, four-time winners Nottingham Forest will face Leeds in the only all-Premier League tie of this round. Newcastle is drawn against second-tier West Bromwich Albion, and Fulham will play AFC Wimbledon at Craven Cottage.
David Moyes is set to return to Deepdale as Everton visits Preston North End, the club where he began his managerial career. Brentford faces a trip to Birmingham City, while Ipswich will host League One Leicester. In the southern section, West Ham, who secured a victory against Portsmouth in the first round, will travel to fellow Championship side Southampton.
European Competitors Enter Later Rounds
The draw for the second round of the EFL Cup was divided into northern and southern sections. The nine English clubs participating in European competitions this season are slated to join the Carabao Cup in the third round.
Brentford, one of the Premier League teams not involved in European competition this season, will enter the tournament at this stage. Keith Andrews’ side will visit St Andrew’s to face Birmingham City. Birmingham progressed to this round after defeating Swansea City 1-0. Brentford reached the quarter-finals of the Carabao Cup in the last two campaigns.
The confirmed date for Brentford’s tie against Birmingham City will be announced in due course. This match is positioned between their 2026/27 Premier League opener against Tottenham Hotspur at Gtech Community Stadium and an away fixture against Leeds United at Eland Road.
Fixture Congestion and Potential Rescheduling
The scheduling of the Carabao Cup second-round matches has highlighted potential fixture conflicts, particularly for Fulham and Chelsea. Both teams are not in European competition and were drawn to play at home in the Carabao Cup. This presents a challenge as teams are generally not supposed to play at home on the same day.
A Premier League match between Fulham and Chelsea was selected for live broadcast on Monday, 24 August. With both teams entering the Carabao Cup in the second round, they faced the prospect of playing two games in the midweek. Typically, this would mean the EFL Cup ties would be moved to Thursday, allowing for 72 hours of rest between matches. Such a change could also impact the Premier League’s weekend schedule.
Fulham’s match at Sunderland was subsequently moved to Sunday, and Chelsea’s game against Brighton was also chosen for Sunday broadcast. However, the issue of both Fulham and Chelsea being drawn at home in the Carabao Cup on the same day remains, potentially requiring concessions from authorities or creative solutions from the EFL.
Further complications arise for eight EFL clubs. The opponents of Fulham and Chelsea, namely Wimbledon and Luton, have League One fixtures scheduled for the Saturday following the cup ties. If the Carabao Cup matches are moved to Thursday, these Saturday games would ordinarily shift to Sunday.
Additionally, a full programme of League One games is scheduled for the following Tuesday, 1 September. This could affect another four matches, potentially requiring them to be moved to Wednesday. This situation could lead to teams playing two games within 48 hours or supporters finding their travel arrangements for displaced games disrupted.
The games potentially impacted on Saturday, 29 August include Wimbledon against Wigan and Mansfield against Luton. The matches on Tuesday, 1 September that could be affected are Burton versus Wimbledon, Wigan against MK Dons, Luton versus Stockport, and Reading against Mansfield.
Full Second Round Draw
Northern section draw
- Stoke v Hull
- Newcastle v West Bromwich Albion
- Blackburn v Sheffield United
- Nottingham Forest v Leeds
- Fleetwood v Shrewsbury
- Bradford v Burnley
- Sheffield Wednesday v Wolves
- Blackpool v Lincoln
- Preston v Everton
- Barnsley v Crewe
- Doncaster v Middlesbrough
Southern section draw
- Stevenage v Reading
- Cardiff v Norwich
- Ipswich v Leicester
- Walsall v Leyton Orient
- Cambridge v Millwall
- Birmingham v Brentford
- Southampton v West Ham
- Watford v Peterborough
- Fulham v AFC Wimbledon
- Plymouth/Exeter v Coventry
- Chelsea v Luton
- Tottenham v Charlton
Source: bbc.co.uk