Chelsea and Tottenham Prepare for Carabao Cup Second Round
Chelsea and Tottenham will step into the Carabao Cup earlier than they’re used to this season, reminders of how far both clubs fell last year.
Finishing 10th and 17th in the Premier League stripped them of European football and with it the usual privilege of skipping the early rounds. Instead, the London rivals join 11 top-flight sides entering at the second-round stage, where the serious end of the competition begins to take shape.
A reshaped start to the cup
The Carabao Cup itself has been tweaked. The first round began before a ball was kicked in the new EFL campaign and, unusually, has been played largely over a weekend rather than its traditional midweek home. Fixture congestion forced the rethink: too many clubs were being asked to play three times in a week before the season had even settled.
The new format has already produced a jolt. Fourth-tier Walsall stunned Championship side Bristol City 1-0 at Ashton Gate on Thursday night, setting the tone after Crawley and Rochdale had emerged from preliminary ties against York and Tranmere. The message landed early: no one will be eased into this competition.
Draw night on Devon derby day
Attention now turns to the second-round draw, which will frame the first real tests for the Premier League’s non-European contingent.
The draw takes place on Monday August 10, 2026, in the build-up to the Devon derby between Plymouth and Exeter at Home Park, with proceedings due to start at around 7:20pm BST. Sky Sports presenter David Prutton will host, with Jobi McAnuff and Jamie Mackie pulling the balls that could define the first cup steps of the season for several managers under pressure.
Viewers can watch it live on Sky Sports Main Event, Sky Sports Football and Sky Sports Ultra HDR, while Sky Sports subscribers can stream the draw via the Sky Go app. For those glued to every twist, Standard Sport will run a live blog as the ties are revealed.
All the while, the Carabao Cup trophy remains in Manchester City’s grip. They will not be in Monday’s draw, but their shadow hangs over it.
Who joins the second round?
Eleven Premier League clubs enter at this point, joining the 35 winners from the first round.
Chelsea and Tottenham headline that group, both desperate for an early-season platform. Alongside them are Brentford, Fulham, Newcastle, Everton, Leeds and Nottingham Forest, plus newly-promoted Coventry, Ipswich and Hull, all stepping in as the competition begins to thicken.
The three sides relegated from the Premier League last term – West Ham, Burnley and Wolves – had no such delay. They started in the first round, a stark reminder of how quickly status can change.
At the other end of the spectrum, nine English clubs are tied up with Europe. Holders Manchester City, Arsenal, Manchester United, Aston Villa and Liverpool are all in the Champions League. Bournemouth, Sunderland and Crystal Palace head into the Europa League, while Brighton take their place in the Conference League. Those nine will not touch the Carabao Cup until the third round next month, when the field opens up and the competition loses its regional split.
For now, the draw remains divided geographically through the first and second rounds, keeping travel lighter and local rivalries simmering before the bigger beasts arrive.
Ball numbers for Monday’s draw will be confirmed once the bulk of the first-round ties are completed over the weekend, the final pieces of the second-round jigsaw dropping into place.
The second-round matches themselves will be played in the week commencing August 24, back in a familiar midweek slot. By then, Chelsea, Tottenham and the rest will know exactly what kind of early-season statement this reshaped Carabao Cup is asking them to make.
