The 2026-27 EFL Cup will start on Friday, 7 August 2026, breaking from its traditional midweek schedule. This change marks a rare exception, as the competition typically begins after the opening round of lower league fixtures.
[BBC]
The EFL have announced that the 2026-27 EFL Cup campaign will begin on Friday, 7 August, 2026.
The competition, known as the Carabao Cup due to the tournament's sponsors, is traditionally played as a midweek fixture. The only usual exception to this is the final, which is played at Wembley on a Sunday.
The competition normally begins on a midweek date following the opening round of Championship, League One and League Two fixtures.
But next season, the competition will instead start on the weekend prior to the start of the EFL league seasons.
Following consultation with clubs from the EFL over a proposed schedule, it was agreed that the EFL Cup's first round will take place a week prior to the season starting.
Additionally, the move to have the competition starting a week before the league season allows more of a rest period for players compared to other seasons, where teams can end up playing three times in quick succession due to the opening round being sandwiched in between two league fixtures.
Some weekend fixtures took place in 2021 and 2020, as well as 14 games in 2012. However, there have been no full sets of weekend round fixtures excluding the final this century.
The first round will only include Championship, League One and League Two teams, with Premier League clubs starting to enter from the second round onward.
This article is the latest from BBC Sport's Ask Me Anything team.
Manchester City were crowned winners of the 2025-26 EFL Cup last month [Getty Images]
The EFL Cup is starting on a Friday to mark the beginning of the 2026-27 campaign, which is a departure from its usual midweek schedule.
The EFL Cup 2026-27 season starts on Friday, 7 August 2026.
Unlike previous seasons where the EFL Cup typically began midweek after the opening round of lower league fixtures, this season will kick off on a Friday.
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