Carabao Cup draw LIVE: Updates as Leeds, Sheffield United and more learn first-round fate

chris wilson

Thu, Jun 27, 2024, 7:45 a.m.·11 min read

The Carabao Cup first-round draw helps mark the start of the new domestic football season (PA)

With the country in the grip of international competition fever over Euro 2024, we may feel like the start of the 2024/25 season is something in the distant future.

However, this morning sees the draw for the first round of the Carabao Cup, with teams from the Championship to League Two learning their opponents at the start of what they hope will be a dream cup run.

The draw takes place at 11.30am, with a regionalised system meaning that teams are drawn against other sides from their respective region – either the 32-team southern section or 38-team northern section.

The majority of Premier League sides enter the competition at the second round, with the seven that are competing in European competition – Manchester City, Arsenal, Liverpool, Aston Villa, Tottenham, Chelsea and Manchester United – entering at the third-round stage.

Follow all the updates below as the ties are drawn from 11.30am onwards:

Carabao Cup first-round draw LIVE

The draw for the first round of the Carabao Cup has been made
First-round draw in full
Ties will be played on the week commencing 12 August
Premier League sides enter the competition at the second round

Leeds face Middlesbrough as Wrexham draw Sheffield United in Carabao Cup first round

12:44 , Luke Baker

Last season’s Carabao Cup semi-finalists Middlesbrough will face Championship rivals Leeds in the first round of this year’s competition.

Michael Carrick’s side were last term’s surprise package after reaching the last four, losing to Chelsea after a first-leg 1-0 home win was followed by a 6-1 thrashing in the return match at Stamford Bridge.

Boro will travel to Elland Road to face a Leeds side who lost to Southampton in the Championship play-off final at Wembley last month.

Sheffield United are back in the first round after being relegated from the Premier League and they will meet Wrexham, who were promoted to League One last campaign, in one of the other standout ties.

Leeds face Middlesbrough as Wrexham draw Sheffield United in Carabao Cup first round

Every Carabao Cup first-round tie

12:30 , Chris Wilson

SOUTH

Cambridge United v Queens Park Rangers

Walsall v Exeter City

Crawley Town v Swindon Town

Oxford United v Peterborough United

Norwich City v Stevenage

Bromley v AFC Wimbledon

Portsmouth v Millwall

Northampton Town v Wycombe Wanderers

Bristol City v Coventry City

Cardiff City v Bristol Rovers

Charlton Athletic v Birmingham City

Watford v MK Dons

Swansea City v Gillingham

Plymouth Argyle v Cheltenham Town

Leyton Orient v Newport County

Colchester United v Reading

NORTH

Salford City v Doncaster Rovers

Rotherham United v Crewe Alexandra

Carlisle United v Stoke City

Leeds United v Middlesbrough

Barrow v Port Vale

Burton Albion v Blackpool

Tranmere Rovers v Accrington Stanley

Fleetwood Town v West Bromwich Albion

Shrewsbury Town v Notts County

Lincoln City v Harrogate Town

Derby County v Chesterfield

Bolton Wanderers v Mansfield Town

Preston North End v Sunderland

Sheffield United v Wrexham

Huddersfield Town v Morecambe

Wigan Athletic v Barnsley

Hull City v Sheffield Wednesday

Stockport County v Blackburn Rovers

Grimsby Town v Bradford City

Carabao Cup first-round draw LIVE

12:12 , Chris Wilson

Below is a pick of the rest of the ties.

Wayne Rooney’s Plymouth Argyle will host Cheltenham Town.

Sheffield United host Hollywood wannabe’s Wrexham.

Bromley mark the start of their first season in the EFL with a game against AFC Wimbledon.

Several ties pit League Tow sides against Championship teams, including:

- Derby County v Chesterfield

- Plymouth Argyle v Cheltenham Town

- Carlisle United v Stoke City

- Swansea City v Gillingham

- Watford v MK Dons

- Fleetwood Town v West Bromwich Albion

All-Championship ties

12:05 , Chris Wilson

Below is every all-Championship tie in the first round.

Portsmouth v Millwall

Bristol City v Coventry City

Hull City v Sheffield Wednesday

Leeds United v Middlesbrough

Preston North End v Sunderland

Carabao Cup first-round draw LIVE

11:55 , Chris Wilson

A reminder that all ties will take place the week commencing 12 August, which is also the week that the EFL season kicks off.

The dates for the subsequent rounds and the final have not yet been published by the EFL.

Carabao Cup first-round draw LIVE

11:50 , Chris Wilson

So, what are the pick of the first-round ties?

Leeds v Middlesbrough stands out, as does Sheffield United v Wrexham. Preston North End v Sunderland is another all championship tie, as is Portsmouth v Millwall.

Bromley will take on AFC Wimbledon as they celebrate their first ever season in the football league.

Carabao Cup first-round draw LIVE

11:44 , Chris Wilson

16. Wigan Athletic v Barnsley

17. Hull City v Sheffield Wednesday

18. Stockport County v Blackburn Rovers

19. Grimsby Town v Bradford City

Carabao Cup first-round draw LIVE

11:42 , Chris Wilson

11. Derby County v Chesterfield

12. Bolton v Mansfield Town

13. Preston North End v Sunderland

14. Sheffield United v Wrexham

15. Huddersfield Town v Morecambe

Carabao Cup first-round draw LIVE

11:41 , Chris Wilson

6 . Burton Albion v Blackpool

7. Tranmere Rovers v Accrington Stanley

8. Fleetwood v West Brom

9. Shrewsbury Town v Notts County

10. Lincoln v Harrogate Town

Carabao Cup first-round draw LIVE

11:39 , Chris Wilson

1. Salford v Doncaster

2. Rotherham v Crewe Alexandra

3. Carlisle United v Stoke City

4. Leeds United v Middlesbrough

5. Barrow v Port Vale

Carabao Cup first-round draw LIVE

11:38 , Chris Wilson

That concludes the southern draw, and we’ll have the northern section any minute now.

Carabao Cup first-round draw LIVE

11:36 , Chris Wilson

11. Charlton Athletic v Birmingham City

12. Watford v MK Dons

13. Swansea City v Gillingham

14. Plymouth Argyle v Cheltenham

15. Leyton Orient v Newport County

16. Colchester United v Reading

Carabao Cup first-round draw LIVE

11:35 , Chris Wilson

6. Bromley v AFC Wimbledon

7 . Portsmouth v Millwall

8. Northampton Town v Wycombe Wanderers

9. Bristol City v Coventry

10. Cardiff City v Bristol Rovers

Carabao Cup first-round draw LIVE

11:33 , Chris Wilson

1 . Cambridge v QPR

2. Walsall v Exeter

3. Crawley Town v Swindon Town

4. Oxford United v Peterborough

5. Norwich City v Stevenage

Carabao Cup first-round draw LIVE

11:32 , Chris Wilson

The teams will be drawn by two-time League Cup winner Frank Sinclair – who won with Chelsea and Leicester – and Gary McAllister, who won as part of a treble of sorts with Liverpool in 2001.

We start with the southern draw.

Carabao Cup first-round draw LIVE

11:28 , Chris Wilson

The road to Wembley starts in less than five minutes time.

Every game of this season’s competition will be shown on Sky Sports.

Carabao Cup first-round draw LIVE

11:20 , Chris Wilson

Just 10 minutes until the draw now. Who are you hoping to see your team draw?

A reminder that the draw will take place live on Sky Sports News.

Carabao Cup first-round draw LIVE

11:15 , Chris Wilson

There are certainly some interesting potential ties in the first round, with the regionalised system offering the potential for many local rivalries to be played out.

Up north, Stoke City and Port Vale could be a tasty fixture, as could Blackpool v Preston North End. Sheffield United vs Sheffield Wednesday would be a real stand-out fixture.

In the south, a Bristol derby would stand out, as would AFC Wimbledon v MK Dons. Cardiff v Swanses is always an interesting one, though we see plenty of that fixture nowadays.

Carabao Cup first-round draw LIVE

11:08 , Chris Wilson

Between 2005 and 2013, the competition was against dominated by what is now the ‘Big 6’, with Spurs winning their fourth trophy in 2008 with a 2-1 victory over Chelsea.

In 2011, Birmingham beat Arsenal 2-1 courtesy of an 89th-minute goal from Obafemi Martins.

Though the winners often come from the top Premier League sides, there’s plenty of variation in the other sides who make the final.

Since 2000, teams including Tranmere Rovers, Bolton, Wigan, Cardiff, Sunderland and Southampton have all made the final.

Carabao Cup first-round draw LIVE

10:58 , Chris Wilson

The first round fixtures will take place in the week commencing 12 August – the same week the lower leagues begin their league campaigns.

The competition has been dominated by the bigger sides of late, with Swansea City the last team outside of the Premier League ‘Big 6’ to win the competition. That victory came in 2012/13, when they beat an overachieving Bradford City side who were in League Two at the time!

Championship fixtures 2024/25: Every first round game as Luton and Burnley square off

10:50 , Chris Wilson

Relegated Luton and Burnley will begin their bids for an immediate return to the Premier League when they face each other in their opening Championship fixture on 12 August.

The match at Kenilworth Road will be played on the Monday night, the final Championship fixture of a weekend which begins with a Friday night double-header in which Blackburn host newly promoted Derby and Sheffield United, also relegated from the Premier League, head to Preston.

Promoted Portsmouth begin life in the Championship away to Leeds the following day, with Oxford hosting Norwich – who have appointed Johannes Hoff Thorup to replace David Wagner.

New Sunderland boss Regis Le Bris will begin his tenure away to Cardiff while Hull boss Tim Walter will welcome Bristol City in his first league match in charge.

All of Saturday’s Championship fixtures will kick off at 12.30pm, with every game across the opening weekend in the Championship, League One and League Two being televised on Sky Sports+ under the EFL’s new £935m deal with the broadcaster.

Championship fixtures 2024/25: Every first round game as Luton and Burnley square off

Premier League fixture list

10:43 , Chris Wilson

The EFL Cup draw helps mark the start of the new domestic football season, as does the release of the respective fixture lists for each league.

The Premier League fixture list was released on 18 June, with the season starting in Manchester as Erik ten Hag’s United side host Fulham.

Ipswich host Liverpool in the first match back in the top flight, with champions Manchester City facing Chelsea in the blockbuster match from the opening weekend.

Find all you need to know below.

Premier League fixtures: Every first round game for 2024/25 season

Carabao Cup first-round draw LIVE

10:35 , Chris Wilson

The most successful sides in the League Cup are as follows:

Liverpool - 10 wins

Manchester City - 8 wins

Manchester United - 6 wins

Chelsea - 5 wins

Aston Villa - 5 wins

A total of 11 sides have won the competition once, including Luton in 1987/88, Stoke City in 1971/72 and Blackburn in 2001/02.

Carabao Cup first-round draw LIVE

10:30 , Chris Wilson

A reminder that Premier League sides don’t enter the draw until the second round.

The 13 teams that aren’t in European competition - along with Luton and Burnley, who finished 18th and 19th in the Premier League last season – enter in the next round, with the other seven sides entering at the third-round stage.

Carabao Cup 2023/24

10:25 , Chris Wilson

Last year’s edition of the League Cup was full of plenty of drama once more, as Liverpool eventually battled to a tense win over Chelsea in the final.

Virgil van Dijk scored a header in extra-time to seal the win for Liverpool, marking the tenth time the Reds have won the trophy. They’ve won the competition more than any other side, and twice more than nearest challengers Manchester City.

The win gave Jurgen Klopp a trophy in his final season in charge at the club.

Liverpool finally find a way to end improbable cup final affliction

Carabo Cup draw: Northern section draw numbers

10:15 , Chris Wilson

1. Accrington Stanley 2. Barnsley

3. Barrow 4. Blackburn Rovers

5. Blackpool 6. Bolton Wanderers

7. Bradford City 8. Burton Albion

9. Carlisle United 10. Chesterfield

11. Crewe Alexandra 12. Derby County

13. Doncaster Rovers 14. Fleetwood Town

15. Grimsby Town 16. Harrogate Town

17. Huddersfield Town 18. Hull City

19. Leeds United 20. Lincoln City

21. Mansfield Town 22. Middlesbrough

23. Morecambe 24. Notts County

25. Port Vale 26. Preston North End

27. Rotherham United 28. Salford City

29. Sheffield United 30. Sheffield Wednesday

31. Shrewsbury Town 32. Stockport County

33. Stoke City 34. Sunderland

35. Tranmere Rovers 36. West Bromwich Albion

37. Wigan Athletic 38. Wrexham

Carabo Cup draw: Southern section draw numbers

10:10 , Chris Wilson

1. AFC Wimbledon 2. Birmingham City

3. Bristol City 4. Bristol Rovers

5. Bromley 6. Cambridge United

7. Cardiff City 8. Charlton Athletic

9. Cheltenham Town 10. Colchester United

11. Coventry City 12. Crawley Town

13. Exeter City 14. Gillingham

15. Leyton Orient 16. Millwall

17. Milton Keynes Dons 18. Newport County

19. Northampton Town 20. Norwich City

21. Oxford United 22. Peterborough United

23. Plymouth Argyle 24. Portsmouth

25. Queens Park Rangers 26. Reading

27. Stevenage 28. Swansea City

29. Swindon Town 30. Walsall

31. Watford 32. Wycombe Wanderers