2025–26 EFL Cup

2025–26 EFL Cup
Carabao Cup
	Wembley Stadium hosted the final
Tournament details
Country	England; Wales
Dates	29 July 2025 – 22 March 2026
Teams	92
Final positions
Champions	Manchester City (9th title)
Runners-up	Arsenal
Tournament statistics
Matches played	93
Goals scored	254 (2.73 per match)
Attendance	1,489,309 (16,014 per match)
Top goal scorer(s)	Diego Gómez; (5 goals)

The 2025–26 EFL Cup was the 66th season of the English Football League Cup. It was sponsored by Carabao Energy Drink and known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons. The EFL Cup is open to all clubs participating in the Premier League and the English Football League.

The winner of the competition (Manchester City) qualified for the play-off round of the 2026–27 UEFA Conference League.

Newcastle United were the defending champions, having beaten Liverpool in the previous season's final, but were eliminated by Manchester City in the semi-finals, who eventually won the EFL Cup after defeating Arsenal in the final.

Teams

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

There was a preliminary round before the first round proper due to the number of teams participating in Europe. This round consisted of the two newly promoted sides to 2025–26 League Two – Barnet and Oldham Athletic – and the two lowest finishers not relegated from 2024–25 League Two – Accrington Stanley and Newport County.^[2]

Phase^[2]	Clubs entering in this round	Clubs advancing from previous round	Number of games	Week commencing
Preliminary round (4 clubs)	4 clubs from EFL League Two (two lowest-ranked clubs not relegated from previous season, and two newly promoted)	N/A	2	4 August 2025
First round (70 clubs)	20 clubs from EFL League Two 24 clubs from EFL League One 24 clubs from EFL Championship	2 winners from preliminary round	35	11 August 2025
Second round (46 clubs)	11 Premier League clubs (not involved in European competitions)	35 winners from first round	23	25 August 2025
Third round (32 clubs)	9 Premier League clubs (involved in European competitions)	23 winners from second round	16	15 September 2025 22 September 2025
Fourth round (16 clubs)	N/a	16 winners from third round	8	28 October 2025
Quarter-finals (8 clubs)	N/a	8 winners from fourth round	4	15 December 2025
Semi-finals (4 clubs)	N/a	4 winners from quarter-finals	4 (two-legged)	12 January 2026 2 February 2026
Final (2 clubs)	N/a	2 winners from semi-finals	1	22 March 2026

Preliminary round

A total of four teams played in the preliminary round: two newly promoted sides from National League (tier 5), and two lowest non-relegated League Two sides (tier 4). 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 26 June 2025 by Shay Given and John Barnes, together with the draw for the first round.^[3]

Number of teams per tier still in the competition
Premier League^[a]	Championship^[b]	League One^[b]	League Two^[c]	Total
20 / 20	24 / 24	24 / 24	24 / 24	92 / 92

^ Premier League teams joined the competition in the second and third rounds.
^ ^a ^b Championship and League One teams joined the competition in the first round.
^ The top 20 League Two teams joined the competition in the first round.

Northern section

5 August 2025	Accrington Stanley (4)	3–1	Oldham Athletic (4)	Accrington
19:45 BST	Popoola 10' Mooney 17' J. Woods 34'	Report	Ogle 63'	Stadium: Crown Ground Attendance: 2,042 Referee: Scott Oldham

Southern section

29 July 2025	Barnet (4)	2–2 (2–4 p)	Newport County (4)	Edgware
19:30 BST	Galvin 90+7' Browne 90+9'	Report	Antwi 31' Reindorf 42'	Stadium: The Hive Stadium Attendance: 1,789 Referee: Darren Drysdale
	Penalties
	Adeniran Browne Hugill Smith		Garner Lloyd Antwi Kamwa Ca. Evans

First round

A total of 70 teams played in the first round: the two winners from the preliminary round, 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 26 June 2025 by Shay Given and John Barnes, together with the draw for the preliminary round.^[3]

Number of teams per tier still in the competition
Premier League^[a]	Championship	League One	League Two	Total
20 / 20	24 / 24	24 / 24	22 / 24	90 / 92

^ Premier League teams joined the competition in the second and third rounds.

Northern section

12 August 2025	Barrow (4)	0–1	Preston North End (2)	Barrow-in-Furness
19:30 BST		Report	Raglan 66' (o.g.)	Stadium: Holker Street Attendance: 3,108 Referee: Ross Joyce

12 August 2025	Middlesbrough (2)	0–4	Doncaster Rovers (3)	Middlesbrough
19:30 BST		Report	Close 11' Ajayi 23' Gotts 84' Nixon 90+6'	Stadium: Riverside Stadium Attendance: 11,979 Referee: Matthew Corlett

12 August 2025	Stockport County (3)	3–1	Crewe Alexandra (4)	Stockport
19:30 BST	Wootton 49' Lowe 51' Fiorini 77'	Report	Tezgel 86'	Stadium: Edgeley Park Attendance: 4,945 Referee: Scott Jackson

12 August 2025	Accrington Stanley (4)	2–1	Peterborough United (3)	Accrington
19:45 BST	Henderson 1' Mooney 25'	Report	Collins 79'	Stadium: Crown Ground Attendance: 847 Referee: Aaron Bannister

12 August 2025	Blackburn Rovers (2)	1–2	Bradford City (3)	Blackburn
19:45 BST	De Neve 45+4'	Report	Touray 2' Swan 4'	Stadium: Ewood Park Attendance: 9,855 Referee: Anthony Backhouse

12 August 2025	Blackpool (3)	0–1	Port Vale (3)	Blackpool
19:45 BST		Report	Faal 75'	Stadium: Bloomfield Road Attendance: 2,606 Referee: Simon Mather

12 August 2025	Chesterfield (4)	0–2	Mansfield Town (3)	Chesterfield
19:45 BST		Report	Oates 2' Evans 59'	Stadium: SMH Group Stadium Attendance: 9,502 Referee: Adam Herczeg

12 August 2025	Grimsby Town (4)	3–1	Shrewsbury Town (4)	Cleethorpes
19:45 BST	Amaluzor 15' Gardner 50' Kabia 90+2' (pen.)	Report	Sang 63'	Stadium: Blundell Park Attendance: 3,156 Referee: Seb Stockbridge

12 August 2025	Harrogate Town (4)	1–3	Lincoln City (3)	Harrogate
19:45 BST	Taylor 90+5'	Report	Moylan 29' Draper 60' Street 68'	Stadium: Wetherby Road Attendance: 2,119 Referee: Zac Kennard-Kettle

12 August 2025	Salford City (4)	0–0 (2–3 p)	Rotherham United (3)	Salford
19:45 BST		Report		Stadium: Moor Lane Attendance: 1,409 Referee: Edward Duckworth
	Penalties
	Edwards Garbutt Woodburn Grant N'Mai		Powell Holmes Gore Hall

12 August 2025	Stoke City (2)	0–0 (4–3 p)	Walsall (4)	Stoke-on-Trent
19:45 BST		Report		Stadium: Bet365 Stadium Attendance: 8,809 Referee: James Bell
	Penalties
	Baker Donely Mubama Bae Jun-ho Bonham		Matt Stuttle Flint Jellis Adomah

12 August 2025	West Bromwich Albion (2)	1–1 (2–3 p)	Derby County (2)	West Bromwich
19:45 BST	Heggebø 67'	Report	Ward 90+6'	Stadium: The Hawthorns Attendance: 8,548 Referee: Thomas Kirk
	Penalties
	Wallace Maja Mowatt Molumby Grant		Goudmijn Osborn Jackson Ward Adams

12 August 2025	Wigan Athletic (3)	1–0	Notts County (4)	Wigan
19:45 BST	Mullin 10' (pen.)	Report		Stadium: Brick Community Stadium Attendance: 2,907 Referee: Ollie Yates

12 August 2025	Wrexham (2)	3–3 (5–3 p)	Hull City (2)	Wrexham
19:45 BST	Lee 31' Palmer 90+1', 90+2'	Report	McBurnie 36' Ndala 70' Crooks 81'	Stadium: Racecourse Ground Attendance: 10,106 Referee: Josh Smith
	Penalties
	McClean Lee Windass Palmer Marriott		Palmer Ndala Kamara Giles

13 August 2025	Barnsley (3)	2–2 (5–4 p)	Fleetwood Town (4)	Barnsley
19:45 BST	Russell 15' Mullarkey 59' (o.g.)	Report	Roberts 45+1' Devonport 90+4'	Stadium: Oakwell Attendance: 3,259 Referee: Carl Brook
	Penalties
	Connell Russell Farrugia Farrell Kelly Cleary		Graydon Helm Devonport Hume Norwood Morrison

13 August 2025	Bolton Wanderers (3)	3–3 (2–4 p)	Sheffield Wednesday (2)	Bolton
19:45 BST	Osei-Tutu 36' Gale 77' Cozier-Duberry 90+2'	Report	Siqueira 8' Ugbo 37' Johnson 80'	Stadium: Toughsheet Community Stadium Attendance: 8,208 Referee: Oliver Langford
	Penalties
	Morley Cozier-Duberry Burstow Conway		McNeill J. Lowe M. Lowe Palmer

13 August 2025	Huddersfield Town (3)	2–2 (3–2 p)	Leicester City (2)	Huddersfield
19:45 BST	Vost 65' Ashia 76'	Report	Choudhury 54' Winks 68'	Stadium: Kirklees Stadium Attendance: 6,884 Referee: David Webb
	Penalties
	Taylor May Castledine Sørensen		Ayew Mavididi L. Thomas El Khannouss McAteer

13 August 2025	Birmingham City (2)	2–1	Sheffield United (2)	Birmingham
20:00 BST	Furuhashi 5' Stansfield 87'	Report	Hamer 72'	Stadium: St Andrew's Attendance: 16,357 Referee: Gavin Ward

19 August 2025	Tranmere Rovers (4)	1–1 (4–5 p)	Burton Albion (3)	Birkenhead
19:45 BST	Whitaker 37'	Report	Whitfield 10'	Stadium: Prenton Park Attendance: 3,524 Referee: Simon Mather
	Penalties
	Patrick Lowe Harris Blacker O'Connor Norman Davison		Whitfield Revan Larsson Tavares Williams Akoto Delap
Note: Fixture was initially scheduled for 12 August, but was postponed due to power failure.^[4]

Southern section

12 August 2025	Swansea City (2)	3–1	Crawley Town (4)	Swansea
19:00 BST	Ronald 4' Wales 67' Galbraith 90+4'	Report	Tshimanga 75'	Stadium: Swansea.com Stadium Attendance: 5,095 Referee: Ben Speedie

12 August 2025	Newport County (4)	0–1	Millwall (2)	Newport
19:30 BST		Report	Leonard 60'	Stadium: Rodney Parade Attendance: 3,670 Referee: Scott Oldham

12 August 2025	Bristol City (2)	2–0	Milton Keynes Dons (4)	Bristol
19:45 BST	Knight 6' Hirakawa 61'	Report		Stadium: Ashton Gate Attendance: 10,280 Referee: Bobby Madley

12 August 2025	Bristol Rovers (4)	0–2	Cambridge United (4)	Bristol
19:45 BST		Report	Appéré 29' Loft 75'	Stadium: Memorial Stadium Attendance: 2,681 Referee: Oliver Mackey

12 August 2025	Cardiff City (3)	2–1	Swindon Town (4)	Cardiff
19:45 BST	Ashford 21' R. Colwill 45+2'	Report	Ehibhatiomhan 55'	Stadium: Cardiff City Stadium Attendance: 7,160 Referee: Elliot Bell

12 August 2025	Charlton Athletic (2)	3–1	Stevenage (3)	Charlton
19:45 BST	Leaburn 27' Fullah 36' Berry 77'	Report	Freestone 86'	Stadium: The Valley Attendance: 4,092 Referee: Craig Hicks

12 August 2025	Coventry City (2)	1–0	Luton Town (3)	Coventry
19:45 BST	Simms 57'	Report		Stadium: Coventry Building Society Arena Attendance: 10,595 Referee: Leigh Doughty

12 August 2025	Gillingham (4)	1–1 (2–4 p)	AFC Wimbledon (3)	Gillingham
19:45 BST	Coleman 83'	Report	Hackford 32'	Stadium: Priestfield Stadium Attendance: 2,209 Referee: Neil Hair
	Penalties
	Clark J. Williams McKenzie Andrews		Stevens Kelly Hippolyte Smith

12 August 2025	Leyton Orient (3)	0–1	Wycombe Wanderers (3)	Leyton
19:45 BST		Report	Simpson 90+4' (o.g.)	Stadium: Brisbane Road Attendance: 3,293 Referee: Tom Nield

12 August 2025	Northampton Town (3)	0–1	Southampton (2)	Northampton
19:45 BST		Report	Fernandes 48'	Stadium: Sixfields Stadium Attendance: 4,381 Referee: David Rock

12 August 2025	Oxford United (2)	1–0	Colchester United (4)	Oxford
19:45 BST	Goodrham 9'	Report		Stadium: Kassam Stadium Attendance: 3,453 Referee: Jacob Miles

12 August 2025	Plymouth Argyle (3)	3–2	Queens Park Rangers (2)	Plymouth
19:45 BST	Wiredu 48' Oseni 54', 78'	Report	Bennie 21' Kolli 45+2'	Stadium: Home Park Attendance: 10,884 Referee: John Busby

12 August 2025	Portsmouth (2)	1–2	Reading (3)	Portsmouth
19:45 BST	Singerr 90+3'	Report	Garcia 34' Ehibhatiomhan 38'	Stadium: Fratton Park Attendance: 14,525 Referee: Farai Hallam

12 August 2025	Watford (2)	1–2	Norwich City (2)	Watford
19:45 BST	Baah 68'	Report	Sargent 10' Núñez 24'	Stadium: Vicarage Road Attendance: 9,243 Referee: Dean Whitestone

12 August 2025	Bromley (4)	1–1 (5–4 p)	Ipswich Town (2)	Bromley
20:00 BST	Elerewe 45'	Report	Johnson 53'	Stadium: Hayes Lane Attendance: 3,005 Referee: Matthew Russell
	Penalties
	Cheek Charles Arthurs Odutayo Pinnock Ifill		Hirst Szmodics Johnson Young Chaplin Al-Hamadi

13 August 2025	Cheltenham Town (4)	2–0	Exeter City (3)	Cheltenham
19:45 BST	Wilson 28' Broom 55'	Report		Stadium: Whaddon Road Attendance: 2,109 Referee: Alan Young

Second round

A total of 46 teams played in the second round: the 11 Premier League clubs not involved in European competitions entered at this stage, along with the 35 winners from the first round. 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 13 August 2025 by Courtney Sweetman-Kirk, Lee Hendrie and Clinton Morrison.^[5]

Number of teams per tier still in the competition
Premier League^[a]	Championship	League One	League Two	Total
20 / 20	14 / 24	16 / 24	5 / 24	55 / 92

^ The nine Premier League teams involved in European competitions joined the competition in the third round.

Northern section

26 August 2025	Accrington Stanley (4)	0–2	Doncaster Rovers (3)	Accrington
19:45 BST		Report	Bailey 75' Close 82'	Stadium: Crown Ground Attendance: 1,270 Referee: Zac Kennard-Kettle

26 August 2025	Barnsley (3)	2–1	Rotherham United (3)	Barnsley
19:45 BST	Russell 59' Phillips 68'	Report	Martha 19'	Stadium: Oakwell Attendance: 5,803 Referee: Matthew Corlett

26 August 2025	Birmingham City (2)	0–1	Port Vale (3)	Birmingham
19:45 BST		Report	Headley 45'	Stadium: St Andrew's Attendance: 21,052 Referee: Ben Speedie

26 August 2025	Burnley (1)	2–1	Derby County (2)	Burnley
19:45 BST	Ramsey 4' Sonne 90+1'	Report	Clark 35'	Stadium: Turf Moor Attendance: 7,019 Referee: Andrew Kitchen

26 August 2025	Burton Albion (3)	0–1	Lincoln City (3)	Burton upon Trent
19:45 BST		Report	House 89'	Stadium: Pirelli Stadium Attendance: 1,837 Referee: Oliver Mackey

26 August 2025	Preston North End (2)	2–3	Wrexham (2)	Preston
19:45 BST	Dobbin 7' Lindsay 32'	Report	Hardie 11' Ashfield 59' K. Moore 90+2'	Stadium: Deepdale Attendance: 12,350 Referee: Adam Herczeg

26 August 2025	Stoke City (2)	0–3	Bradford City (3)	Stoke-on-Trent
19:45 BST		Report	Swan 12' Halliday 31' Lapslie 62'	Stadium: Bet365 Stadium Attendance: 9,947 Referee: Leigh Doughty

26 August 2025	Sunderland (1)	1–1 (5–6 p)	Huddersfield Town (3)	Sunderland
19:45 BST	Guiu 84'	Report	Castledine 9'	Stadium: Stadium of Light Attendance: 22,249 Referee: Dean Whitestone
	Penalties
	Le Fée Roberts Neil Rigg Seelt Aleksić		Kane Radulović Harness Wiles Gooch Kasumu

26 August 2025	Wigan Athletic (3)	1–0	Stockport County (3)	Wigan
19:45 BST	Murray 84'	Report		Stadium: Brick Community Stadium Attendance: 3,119 Referee: Tom Reeves

26 August 2025	Sheffield Wednesday (2)	1–1 (3–0 p)	Leeds United (1)	Sheffield
20:00 BST	Lowe 63'	Report	Bogle 81'	Stadium: Hillsborough Stadium Attendance: 7,801 Referee: Robert Jones
	Penalties
	Bannan Ugbo Palmer		Piroe Calvert-Lewin Longstaff

27 August 2025	Everton (1)	2–0	Mansfield Town (3)	Liverpool
19:45 BST	Alcaraz 51' Beto 89'	Report		Stadium: Hill Dickinson Stadium Attendance: 48,583 Referee: Thomas Bramall

27 August 2025	Grimsby Town (4)	2–2 (12–11 p)	Manchester United (1)	Cleethorpes
20:00 BST	Vernam 22' Warren 30'	Report	Mbeumo 75' Maguire 89'	Stadium: Blundell Park Attendance: 8,647 Referee: Tony Harrington
	Penalties
	Kabia Burns Oduor Staunton Brown McJannet Turi Sweeney Khouri Warren Pym Kabia Burns		Fernandes Mbeumo Mount Dalot Cunha Zirkzee Maguire Mainoo De Ligt Šeško Onana Fernandes Mbeumo

Southern section

26 August 2025	Reading (3)	2–1	AFC Wimbledon (3)	Reading
19:00 BST	Fraser 24' Camará 70'	Report	Bugiel 26'	Stadium: Madejski Stadium Attendance: 3,860 Referee: Jacob Miles

26 August 2025	Cambridge United (4)	3–1	Charlton Athletic (2)	Cambridge
19:30 BST	Brophy 15' Kouassi 29' Bradshaw 55'	Report	Fullah 43'	Stadium: Abbey Stadium Attendance: 3,231 Referee: David Rock

26 August 2025	Wolverhampton Wanderers (1)	3–2	West Ham United (1)	Wolverhampton
19:30 BST	R. Gomes 43' Larsen 82', 84'	Report	Souček 50' Paquetá 63'	Stadium: Molineux Stadium Attendance: 19,561 Referee: Darren England

26 August 2025	Bournemouth (1)	0–2	Brentford (1)	Bournemouth
19:45 BST		Report	Carvalho 34' Thiago 65'	Stadium: Dean Court Attendance: 10,499 Referee: Michael Salisbury

26 August 2025	Bromley (4)	1–1 (4–5 p)	Wycombe Wanderers (3)	Bromley
19:45 BST	Arthurs 35'	Report	Westergaard 5'	Stadium: Hayes Lane Attendance: 2,310 Referee: Thomas Parsons
	Penalties
	Cheek Arthurs Odutayo Ifill Webster Cameron Hondermarck		Boyd-Munce Savage Hartridge Lowry Westergaard Back Stones

26 August 2025	Cardiff City (3)	3–0	Cheltenham Town (4)	Cardiff
19:45 BST	Davies 11' Chambers 32' J. Colwill 76'	Report		Stadium: Cardiff City Stadium Attendance: 6,233 Referee: Edward Duckworth

26 August 2025	Millwall (2)	2–1	Coventry City (2)	Bermondsey
19:45 BST	Luongo 33' Grant 76'	Report	Wright 89' (pen.)	Stadium: The Den Attendance: 7,048 Referee: Stephen Martin

26 August 2025	Norwich City (2)	0–3	Southampton (2)	Norwich
19:45 BST		Report	Archer 42' Fraser 62' Matsuki 81'	Stadium: Carrow Road Attendance: 17,351 Referee: Tom Nield

26 August 2025	Swansea City (2)	1–1 (5–3 p)	Plymouth Argyle (3)	Swansea
19:45 BST	Vipotnik 22'	Report	Sarpong-Wiredu 45'	Stadium: Swansea.com Stadium Attendance: 7,279 Referee: Elliott Bell
	Penalties
	Vipotnik Galbraith Cullen Cabango Widell		Tolaj Sorinola Watts Mumba

27 August 2025	Fulham (1)	2–0	Bristol City (2)	Fulham
19:45 BST	Tanner 8' (o.g.) Jiménez 21'	Report		Stadium: Craven Cottage Attendance: 11,749 Referee: Lewis Smith

27 August 2025	Oxford United (2)	0–6	Brighton & Hove Albion (1)	Oxford
19:45 BST		Report	Boscagli 13' Gruda 20' Gómez 60' Tzimas 71', 77' Watson 86'	Stadium: Kassam Stadium Attendance: 9,010 Referee: Oliver Langford

Third round

A total of 32 teams played in the third round: the nine Premier League clubs involved in European competitions (Arsenal, Aston Villa, Chelsea, Crystal Palace, Liverpool, Manchester City, Newcastle United, Nottingham Forest and Tottenham Hotspur) entered at this stage along with the 23 winners from the second round. The draw was made on 27 August 2025 by Jobi McAnuff and Phil Jones, where conditions were implemented to ensure clubs participating in the UEFA Champions League did not draw clubs participating in the UEFA Europa League due to fixture clashes.^[6]

Number of teams per tier still in the competition
Premier League	Championship	League One	League Two	Total
15 / 20	5 / 24	10 / 24	2 / 24	32 / 92

16 September 2025	Sheffield Wednesday (2)	0–1	Grimsby Town (4)	Sheffield
19:45 BST		Report	Kabia 49'	Stadium: Hillsborough Stadium Attendance: 9,424 Referee: Elliott Bell

16 September 2025	Brentford (1)	1–1 (4–2 p)	Aston Villa (1)	Brentford
20:00 BST	Hickey 57'	Report	Elliott 43'	Stadium: Brentford Community Stadium Attendance: 15,895 Referee: John Brooks
	Penalties
	Carvalho Nelson Yarmolyuk Damsgaard		McGinn Watkins Buendía Cash

16 September 2025	Crystal Palace (1)	1–1 (4–2 p)	Millwall (2)	Selhurst
20:00 BST	Richards 72'	Report	Leonard 90+1'	Stadium: Selhurst Park Attendance: 16,754 Referee: John Busby
	Penalties
	Mateta Richards Devenny Kamada		Crama Harding Leonard Emakhu

17 September 2025	Swansea City (2)	3–2	Nottingham Forest (1)	Swansea
20:00 BST	Burgess 68', 90+7' Vipotnik 90+3'	Report	Igor Jesus 15', 45+1'	Stadium: Swansea.com Stadium Attendance: 11,354 Referee: Bobby Madley

23 September 2025	Barnsley (3)	0–6	Brighton & Hove Albion (1)	Barnsley
19:45 BST		Report	Gómez 9', 21', 33', 68' Howell 87' Ayari 89'	Stadium: Oakwell Attendance: 7,790 Referee: Tom Reeves

23 September 2025	Burnley (1)	1–2	Cardiff City (3)	Burnley
19:45 BST	Flemming 56'	Report	J. Colwill 30' Robinson 35'	Stadium: Turf Moor Attendance: 6,010 Referee: David Webb

23 September 2025	Fulham (1)	1–0	Cambridge United (4)	Fulham
19:45 BST	Smith Rowe 66'	Report		Stadium: Craven Cottage Attendance: 16,254 Referee: Ruebyn Ricardo

23 September 2025	Lincoln City (3)	1–2	Chelsea (1)	Lincoln
19:45 BST	Street 42'	Report	George 48' Buonanotte 50'	Stadium: Sincil Bank Attendance: 10,214 Referee: Matt Donohue

23 September 2025	Wigan Athletic (3)	0–2	Wycombe Wanderers (3)	Wigan
19:45 BST		Report	Boyd-Munce 32' McNeilly 62'	Stadium: Brick Community Stadium Attendance: 2,077 Referee: Edward Duckworth

23 September 2025	Wolverhampton Wanderers (1)	2–0	Everton (1)	Wolverhampton
19:45 BST	Munetsi 29' Arokodare 87'	Report		Stadium: Molineux Stadium Attendance: 18,758 Referee: Craig Pawson

23 September 2025	Wrexham (2)	2–0	Reading (3)	Wrexham
19:45 BST	Broadhead 57' Smith 70'	Report		Stadium: Racecourse Ground Attendance: 9,457 Referee: Simon Mather

23 September 2025	Liverpool (1)	2–1	Southampton (2)	Liverpool
20:00 BST	Isak 43' Ekitike 85'	Report	Charles 76'	Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 59,518 Referee: Thomas Bramall

24 September 2025	Huddersfield Town (3)	0–2	Manchester City (1)	Huddersfield
19:45 BST		Report	Foden 18' Savinho 74'	Stadium: Kirklees Stadium Attendance: 22,052 Referee: Michael Salisbury

24 September 2025	Newcastle United (1)	4–1	Bradford City (3)	Newcastle upon Tyne
19:45 BST	Joelinton 17', 75' Osula 19', 87'	Report	Cook 79'	Stadium: St James' Park Attendance: 51,249 Referee: Thomas Kirk

24 September 2025	Tottenham Hotspur (1)	3–0	Doncaster Rovers (3)	Tottenham
19:45 BST	Palhinha 14' McGrath 17' (o.g.) Johnson 90+4'	Report		Stadium: Tottenham Hotspur Stadium Attendance: 42,473 Referee: Andrew Madley

24 September 2025	Port Vale (3)	0–2	Arsenal (1)	Stoke-on-Trent
20:00 BST		Report	Eze 8' Trossard 86'	Stadium: Vale Park Attendance: 16,326 Referee: Andrew Kitchen

Fourth round

The 16 winners from the third round played in the fourth round. League Two side Grimsby Town were the lowest-ranked team in the draw, which was made on 24 September 2025 by Jamie Redknapp and Michael Brown.^[7]

Number of teams per tier still in the competition
Premier League	Championship	League One	League Two	Total
11 / 20	2 / 24	2 / 24	1 / 24	16 / 92

28 October 2025	Grimsby Town (4)	0–5	Brentford (1)	Cleethorpes
19:45 GMT		Report	Jensen 22' Lewis-Potter 26' Nelson 43' Carvalho 54' (pen.) Collins 75'	Stadium: Blundell Park Attendance: 8,637 Referee: Thomas Kirk

28 October 2025	Wycombe Wanderers (3)	1–1 (4–5 p)	Fulham (1)	High Wycombe
19:45 GMT	Woodrow 4'	Report	King 48'	Stadium: Adams Park Attendance: 9,709 Referee: Bobby Madley
	Penalties
	Henderson Leahy Boyd-Munce Hagelskjær Bell Onyedinma McNeilly		Lukić Traoré Kevin Iwobi Sessegnon Kusi-Asare Diop

28 October 2025	Wrexham (2)	1–2	Cardiff City (3)	Wrexham
20:00 GMT	K. Moore 52'	Report	Salech 13' Fish 71'	Stadium: Racecourse Ground Attendance: 10,563 Referee: Gavin Ward

29 October 2025	Arsenal (1)	2–0	Brighton & Hove Albion (1)	Holloway
19:45 GMT	Nwaneri 57' Saka 76'	Report		Stadium: Emirates Stadium Attendance: 59,292 Referee: Sam Barrott

29 October 2025	Liverpool (1)	0–3	Crystal Palace (1)	Liverpool
19:45 GMT		Report	Sarr 41', 45' Pino 88'	Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 60,420 Referee: Craig Pawson

29 October 2025	Swansea City (2)	1–3	Manchester City (1)	Swansea
19:45 GMT	Franco 12'	Report	Doku 39' Marmoush 77' Cherki 90+3'	Stadium: Swansea.com Stadium Attendance: 20,490 Referee: Jarred Gillett

29 October 2025	Wolverhampton Wanderers (1)	3–4	Chelsea (1)	Wolverhampton
19:45 GMT	Arokodare 48' Wolfe 73', 90+1'	Report	Santos 5' George 15' Estêvão 41' Gittens 89'	Stadium: Molineux Stadium Attendance: 24,449 Referee: Thomas Bramall

29 October 2025	Newcastle United (1)	2–0	Tottenham Hotspur (1)	Newcastle upon Tyne
20:00 GMT	Schär 24' Woltemade 50'	Report		Stadium: St James' Park Attendance: 51,216 Referee: Chris Kavanagh

Quarter-finals

The eight winners from the fourth round played in the quarter-finals. League One side Cardiff City were the only non-Premier League team in the draw, which was made on 29 October 2025 by Jobi McAnuff and Jamie Redknapp.^[8]

Number of teams per tier still in the competition
Premier League	Championship	League One	League Two	Total
7 / 20	0 / 24	1 / 24	0 / 24	8 / 92

16 December 2025	Cardiff City (3)	1–3	Chelsea (1)	Cardiff
20:00 GMT	Turnbull 75'	Report	Garnacho 57', 90+3' Neto 82'	Stadium: Cardiff City Stadium Attendance: 33,027 Referee: Tony Harrington

17 December 2025	Manchester City (1)	2–0	Brentford (1)	Manchester
19:30 GMT	Cherki 32' Savinho 67'	Report		Stadium: City of Manchester Stadium Attendance: 38,254 Referee: Sam Barrott

17 December 2025	Newcastle United (1)	2–1	Fulham (1)	Newcastle upon Tyne
20:15 GMT	Wissa 10' Miley 90+2'	Report	Lukić 16'	Stadium: St James' Park Attendance: 51,301 Referee: Darren England

23 December 2025	Arsenal (1)	1–1 (8–7 p)	Crystal Palace (1)	Holloway
20:00 GMT	Lacroix 80' (o.g.)	Report	Guéhi 90+5'	Stadium: Emirates Stadium Attendance: 59,497 Referee: Stuart Attwell
	Penalties
	Ødegaard Rice Saka Trossard Merino Calafiori Timber Saliba		Mateta Devenny Hughes Sosa Lerma Wharton Uche Lacroix

Semi-finals

The four winners from the quarter-finals play in the semi-finals. The draw was made on 17 December 2025 by Jamie Redknapp and Shay Given.^[9]

Number of teams per tier still in the competition
Premier League	Championship	League One	League Two	Total
4 / 20	0 / 24	0 / 24	0 / 24	4 / 92

Team 1	Agg. Tooltip Aggregate score	Team 2	1st leg	2nd leg
Newcastle United (1)	1–5	Manchester City (1)	0–2	1–3
Chelsea (1)	2–4	Arsenal (1)	2–3	0–1

13 January 2026

20:00 GMT

Newcastle United (1)	0–2	Manchester City (1)
	Report	Semenyo 53' Cherki 90+8'

St James' Park, Newcastle upon Tyne

Attendance: 51,392

Referee: Chris Kavanagh

4 February 2026

20:00 GMT

Manchester City (1)	3–1	Newcastle United (1)
Marmoush 7', 29' Reijnders 32'	Report	Elanga 62'

City of Manchester Stadium, Manchester

Attendance: 41,834

Referee: Tony Harrington

Manchester City won 5–1 on aggregate.

14 January 2026

20:00 GMT

Chelsea (1)	2–3	Arsenal (1)
Garnacho 57', 83'	Report	White 7' Gyökeres 49' Zubimendi 71'

Stamford Bridge, Fulham

Attendance: 39,243

Referee: Simon Hooper

3 February 2026

20:00 GMT

Arsenal (1)	1–0	Chelsea (1)
Havertz 90+7'	Report

Emirates Stadium, Holloway

Attendance: 59,452

Referee: Peter Bankes

Arsenal won 4–2 on aggregate.

Final

Number of teams per tier still in the competition
Premier League	Championship	League One	League Two	Total
2 / 20	0 / 24	0 / 24	0 / 24	2 / 92

22 March 2026

16:30 GMT

Arsenal	0–2	Manchester City
	Report	O'Reilly 60', 64'

Wembley Stadium, London

Attendance: 88,486

Referee: Peter Bankes (Lancashire)

Top goalscorers

Rank^[10]	Player	Club	Goals
1	Diego Gómez	Brighton & Hove Albion	5
2	Alejandro Garnacho	Chelsea	4
3	Rayan Cherki	Manchester City	3
3	Omar Marmoush	Manchester City	3
5	28 players		2

References

^ "Carabao Cup format confirmed for 2025/26 season". English Football League. 12 June 2025.
^ ^a ^b Holloway, Kate (12 June 2025). "Carabao Cup brings in preliminary round for 2025-26". BBC Sport. Retrieved 15 August 2025.
^ ^a ^b "Carabao Cup Round One confirmed". English Football League. 26 June 2025.
^ Wareing, Dan (12 August 2025). "Hundreds left without power as cup tie postponed". BBC News. Retrieved 15 August 2025.
^ "Carabao Cup Round Two Confirmed". English Football League. 13 August 2025.
^ "Carabao Cup Round Three draw confirmed". English Football League. 27 August 2025.
^ "Carabao Cup: Round Four draw confirmed". English Football League. 24 September 2025.
^ "Carabao Cup Quarter-Final draw confirmed". English Football League. 29 October 2025.
^ "Carabao Cup Semi-Final draw revealed". English Football League. 17 December 2025.
^ "English League Cup 2025/2026: Top Scorer". WorldFootball.net. Retrieved 22 March 2026.

[4] Premier League teams joined the competition in the second and third rounds.

[ChampLge1-5] Championship and League One teams joined the competition in the first round.

[6] The top 20 League Two teams joined the competition in the first round.

[7] Premier League teams joined the competition in the second and third rounds.

[10] The nine Premier League teams involved in European competitions joined the competition in the third round.

[EFLFormat-1] "Carabao Cup format confirmed for 2025/26 season". English Football League. 12 June 2025.

[BBC_Prelim-2] Holloway, Kate (12 June 2025). "Carabao Cup brings in preliminary round for 2025-26". BBC Sport. Retrieved 15 August 2025.

[PrelimRound1-3] "Carabao Cup Round One confirmed". English Football League. 26 June 2025.

[8] Wareing, Dan (12 August 2025). "Hundreds left without power as cup tie postponed". BBC News. Retrieved 15 August 2025.

[9] "Carabao Cup Round Two Confirmed". English Football League. 13 August 2025.

[11] "Carabao Cup Round Three draw confirmed". English Football League. 27 August 2025.

[12] "Carabao Cup: Round Four draw confirmed". English Football League. 24 September 2025.

[13] "Carabao Cup Quarter-Final draw confirmed". English Football League. 29 October 2025.

[14] "Carabao Cup Semi-Final draw revealed". English Football League. 17 December 2025.

[15] "English League Cup 2025/2026: Top Scorer". WorldFootball.net. Retrieved 22 March 2026.

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