Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur will discover their opponents when the Carabao Cup second-round draw takes place, with the competition set to welcome a fresh batch of Premier League clubs into the fray.
The draw is expected to be held on Monday, 10 August, broadcast live on Sky Sports Main Event during coverage of the Plymouth versus Exeter City tie, which will be the final match of the first round. While an exact time has not been officially confirmed, organisers are expected to follow the pattern of last season's event, with the draw likely taking place during the pre-match build-up at around 7:20pm.
Chelsea will enter the competition as one of the most notable names in the draw after missing out on European qualification last season. Manager Xabi Alonso will be eager to make an early mark in his first full campaign in charge by pursuing an early trophy opportunity. Tottenham, who narrowly avoided relegation from the Premier League in the 2025/26 season, will also join the competition at this stage as they look to bounce back domestically.
In total, eight Premier League clubs will be entered into the second round: Brentford, Chelsea, Fulham, Newcastle United, Everton, Leeds United, Nottingham Forest and Tottenham Hotspur.
Before that, attention turns to the first round, which runs from Thursday through to Monday and involves 68 EFL clubs looking to progress. Not every side involved will be playing their first match of the tournament, however, as Rochdale and Crawley Town were already required to navigate a preliminary round before reaching this stage.
Among the standout fixtures of the first round is West Ham United's clash with League One's Portsmouth, while a local derby will see Plymouth Argyle host Exeter City in a Devon showdown. Elsewhere, promotion-chasing Championship sides Middlesbrough and Wrexham will meet at the Riverside Stadium in what promises to be a tightly contested affair.
The second-round draw will continue to be regionalised, split into northern and southern sections as in previous years, though the specific ball numbers for the draw have yet to be confirmed and are expected to be revealed closer to the event.
The full first-round fixture list features a wide spread of EFL clubs across the country. In the northern section, notable pairings include Middlesbrough against Wrexham, Sheffield Wednesday facing Bolton, and Wolves taking on Port Vale. The southern section includes QPR against Millwall, Watford hosting Crawley Town, and West Ham's aforementioned meeting with Portsmouth, among numerous other ties spanning the EFL pyramid.
Looking further ahead, the Carabao Cup calendar has been mapped out for the rest of the season. The second round will be played during the week commencing 24 August 2026, followed by the third round across two weeks in September. The fourth round is scheduled for late October, with the fifth round set for mid-December. The semi-finals will be played over two legs in January and February 2027, before the final takes place on Sunday, 21 March 2027.
With the tournament's format ensuring gradual entry for top-flight clubs, attention will now turn to how the bracket shapes up once the second-round draw is completed, setting the stage for Premier League sides to begin their pursuit of one of English football's most historic domestic trophies.
Based on reporting from The Independent.