Gearing up for one of the country’s biggest domestic cup competitions and wish to find out more about Round One? Then look no further.
Sporf are proud to deliver some exclusive content for the upcoming Carabao Cup.
The Carabao Cup offers clubs their first taste of domestic cup competition each season. And this time around will be better than last year as it will grant the winner of the competition a place in the play-off round of the 2022–23 UEFA Europa Conference League, while players will welcome the long-awaited return of fans.
In Round One, 22 of 24 Championship clubs will enter along with all League One and League Two clubs.
The Cup is one of the major trophies to win in UK football, with the likes of Manchester City lifting the trophy five times in the past six years.
There have been some pure moments of magic: from that iconic London final in 2007 between Arsenal and Chelsea, to 2014 when Yaya Toure sunk Sunderland hearts with an audacious strike to secure a 3-1 win for the Citizens, while some of England’s EURO 2020 heroes including Jude Bellingham and Phil Foden made their debuts in the competition.
Round One is regionalised into north and south sections – and includes some mouth-watering matches already.
Millwall will be making their way to the south coast, on Tuesday, August 10 to play League One Portsmouth.
Wayne Rooney’s Derby County, meanwhile, will face Gary Neville’s Salford City, the sides only having just played a friendly fixture last week in which the Rams lost 2-1.
Despite the result, Tuesday’s fixture still has Championship side Derby as the favourites against the League Two opposition.
But the opening stages of the tournament isn’t just full of David vs Goliath games- indeed, the Championship’s Swansea City and Reading will compete for the chance to progress to Round Two.
Last season in the league, the pair were involved in an exciting 2-2 draw at the Madejski Stadium, while Swansea picked up all three points in the reverse fixture with a 2-0 win at the Liberty Stadium.
Lastly, Sutton United, promoted from the National League to the EFL, for the first time in their 123 year history, play in the Carabao Cup for the first time in a huge tie away at Cardiff City.
Last season, the Bluebirds were knocked out of the competition at this first stage by Northampton Town 3-0. Can Sutton pull off a similar feat?
All that and more to come in the Carabao Cup this season with SPORF covering the tournament extensively.
You can find all EFL ticketing information to get behind your team here.
Featured image credit: Getty
Part of a paid partnership with EFL.
Featured image credit: Getty
