.svg&w=384&q=75 "GoalGist logo"){kind=small}
Carabao Cup Third Round Draw: European Heavyweights Enter
The Carabao Cup moves out of the early-season shadows tonight. The third-round draw is coming, and with it the entrance of the Premier League’s European contingent – and a very modern complication.
Holders Manchester City are joined by last season’s beaten finalists Arsenal, as well as Manchester United, Aston Villa, Liverpool, Bournemouth, Sunderland, Brighton and Crystal Palace. All nine will discover their third‑round opponents this evening, even as the second round is still being wrapped up.
But this is not the old, simple toss‑them‑all‑in draw.
Why Europe changes everything
UEFA’s expanded Champions League and Europa League formats have forced the Carabao Cup to contort around them. The third round is now stretched across two weeks, starting Monday 7 September and Monday 14 September.
Champions League fixtures fall in the week beginning 7 September. That means Arsenal, Manchester City, Liverpool, Manchester United and Aston Villa must play their Carabao Cup ties in the following week.
The Europa League starts in the week beginning 14 September, so Bournemouth, Sunderland and Crystal Palace are locked into playing their League Cup ties in the first week.
The EFL has been blunt about the knock‑on effect. UEFA games cannot move, so the League Cup has to. To keep the competition on schedule without colliding with European nights, those eight clubs involved in the Champions League or Europa League are protected from drawing each other in round three. Every tie they’re involved in must be playable in one of the two available weeks. That’s the logic. The draw has to reflect it.
So before the main event, there’s a twist.
How tonight’s draw actually works
First comes the pre‑draw. Before Preston North End kick off against Everton in their second‑round tie at Deepdale, a preliminary process will decide whether each of the eight European entrants will be at home or away in round three.
Only after Preston v Everton is settled will the main draw begin on Sky Sports. The first eight ties out of the hat will all feature those Champions League and Europa League clubs, with their home or away status already fixed by the pre‑draw. Each of them will be paired with a side from a separate bowl containing the rest of the competition’s survivors, guaranteeing they cannot face one another at this stage.
Once those eight fixtures are set, the final eight ties are drawn with no restrictions. From round three onwards, the old North/South split disappears. It’s one national pot, and the geography stops offering any kind of shield.
When and where to watch it
The third‑round draw takes place tonight, Wednesday 26 August. Preston v Everton kicks off at 8pm BST, and the draw is expected to start at around 10.15pm BST once that game concludes.
Coverage begins at 7pm BST on Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports Football, with the pre‑draw likely to take place at around 7.30pm BST. Sky Sports subscribers can also watch the draw online via the Sky Go app.
By the time the balls are swirling, the second round will be almost done.
The ties still to come
Four fixtures headline tonight’s action and set the stage for the draw. David Moyes takes his Everton side back to where his managerial story began, at Preston. At St James’ Park, Matthias Jaissle chases a first competitive win as Newcastle United manager against West Bromwich Albion. Tottenham Hotspur host Charlton Athletic in a meeting that, not long ago, could easily have belonged to the Championship.
Two more matches follow tomorrow, both shaped by television. Sky Sports’ first Monday Night Football of the season brings Fulham and Chelsea under the lights in west London. Chelsea host Luton Town, while Fulham welcome AFC Wimbledon.
The schedule:
- Wednesday 28 August
- Bradford City v Burnley
- Newcastle United v West Bromwich Albion
- Preston North End v Everton
- Tottenham Hotspur v Charlton Athletic
- Thursday 27 August
- Chelsea v Luton Town
- Fulham v AFC Wimbledon
By the end of those games, the 32‑team third‑round lineup will be complete.
Who’s in the hat? Third‑round ball numbers
The full list of ball numbers for the third round is already set, with a few places still dependent on tonight and tomorrow’s results:
- AFC Bournemouth
- Arsenal
- Aston Villa
- Crystal Palace
- Manchester City
- Manchester United
- Liverpool
- Sunderland
- Barnsley
- Brentford
- Brighton & Hove Albion
- Coventry City
- Fleetwood Town
- Hull City
- Ipswich Town
- Leeds United
- Leyton Orient
- Lincoln City
- Middlesbrough
- Millwall
- Norwich City
- Peterborough United
- Reading
- Sheffield United
- West Ham United
- Wolverhampton Wanderers
- Bradford City / Burnley
- Newcastle United / West Bromwich Albion
- Tottenham Hotspur / Charlton Athletic
- Preston North End / Everton
- Chelsea / Luton Town
- Fulham / AFC Wimbledon
Leeds United are in after another sharp away performance, winning at Nottingham Forest for the second time in four days. Hull City squeezed past Stoke City on penalties. Fleetwood Town, the only fourth‑tier side left standing, hammered Shrewsbury Town 4–0. Brentford cut loose against Birmingham City, running out 6–1 winners.
Those results have hardened the edges of the draw. Lower‑league sides will want a money‑spinning trip to a giant. The giants, privately, will hope for something gentler as European campaigns loom.
Soon enough, the names will be paired, the dates fixed, and the path to Wembley will look a little clearer. The question now is simple: which of England’s heavyweights will see this reshaped, congested Carabao Cup as a burden – and who will smell a trophy there for the taking?
