2026 EFL Trophy final

2026 EFL Trophy final
Event2025–26 EFL Trophy
Date12 April 2026
VenueWembley Stadium, London

The 2026 EFL Trophy final, known as the Vertu Trophy final for sponsorship reasons, is an association football match that will be played on 12 April 2026 at Wembley Stadium, London, England. It will be played between League One teams Luton Town and Stockport County. The match will decide the winners of the 2025–26 EFL Trophy, a knock-out tournament comprising clubs from League One and League Two of the English Football League (EFL), as well as 16 Category One academy sides representing Premier League and Championship clubs.[1] If Luton win the final it would be their second time lifting the trophy, having first won the competition in 2009. If Stockport win, it would be their first time lifting the trophy after twice finishing as runners up in 1992 and 1993.

Route to the final

Note: In all results below, the score of the finalist is given first (H: home; A: away).

Luton Town Round Stockport County
Opponent Result Group stage Opponent Result
Barnet 4–1 (H) Matchday 1 Wolverhampton Wanderers U21 5–3 (H)
Cambridge United 1–3 (A) Matchday 2 Salford City 1–3 (A)
Brighton & Hove Albion U21 3–1 (H) Matchday 3 Wigan Athletic 1–1 (6–5 p) (H)
Southern section Group H

Pos Team Pld Pts
1 Luton Town (A) 3 6
2 Cambridge United (A) 3 6
3 Barnet (E) 3 5
4 Brighton & Hove Albion U21 (E) 3 1
Updated to match(es) played on 28 October 2025. Source: EFL
(A) Advance to next round; (E) Eliminated
Final standings Northern section Group A

Pos Team Pld Pts
1 Salford City (A) 3 9
2 Stockport County (A) 3 5
3 Wolverhampton Wanderers U21 (E) 3 3
4 Wigan Athletic (E) 3 1
Updated to match(es) played on 11 November 2025. Source: EFL
(A) Advance to next round; (E) Eliminated
Opponent Result Knockout stage Opponent Result
Exeter City 4–0 (H) Round of 32 Crewe Alexandra 1–1 (4–1 p) (A)
Swindon Town 1–2 (H)[a] Round of 16 Harrogate Town 2–1 (H)
Plymouth Argyle 2–1 (H) Quarter-final Port Vale 4–0 (A)
Northampton Town 2–1 (H) Semi-final Doncaster Rovers 1–0 (A)
  1. ^ Swindon Town defeated Luton Town in the last 16, eliminating them from the competition. Hwever as a result of Swindon fielding two ineligible players in the tie, Swindon were removed from the competition and Luton took their place in the Quarter-finals.[2][3]

Match

Details

References

  1. ^ "2026 Vertu Trophy Final". www.wembleystadium.com.
  2. ^ "EFL statement: Swindon Town Football Club". efl.com.
  3. ^ "Swindon expelled from Trophy and Luton reinstated". bbc.com.