Carabao Cup
Overview
The Carabao Cup is a professional football knockout tournament organized by the English Football League (EFL), and its official name is the EFL Cup. Clubs from the English Premier League and leagues under the EFL (Championship, League One, and League Two) participate, and since its establishment in 1960 it has become one of the representative cup competitions of the English football season. From the 2017-18 season, as Thai energy drink brand Carabao took over as title sponsor, it became widely known by the name Carabao Cup.
Historically, because multiple companies served as sponsors and the name changed frequently, it is also commonly known among football fans by the conventional name League Cup.
Main content
Competition format
The competition is conducted as a single-match knockout format, and the final is played as a single match at Wembley Stadium in London, England. The semi-finals have been conducted as two-legged home-and-away ties, but for the 2024-25 season discussions continued about changing the semi-finals to single matches as well in order to reduce the schedule. If a match is drawn, the winner is decided through extra time and a penalty shootout.
Eligibility and schedule
All 20 Premier League clubs and 72 clubs under the EFL participate, and a seeding system is applied in which higher-division teams join from the later rounds. The competition usually begins in August and concludes with the final in February or March of the following year. Clubs participating in European competitions often join from the third round in consideration of fixture congestion.
Winners and records
Liverpool FC holds the record for the most titles, and big clubs such as Manchester City, Chelsea, Arsenal, and Tottenham have consistently contended for the title. Meanwhile, the Carabao Cup is also used as a stage for top Premier League teams to rotate their squads and give playing opportunities to emerging players, giving it the characteristic of a stage for 'underdog uprisings' and upsets.
Changes in name
It began as the Football League Cup at its establishment in 1960, and later, depending on the sponsor, was called the Milk Cup (1981-1986), Littlewoods Cup (1986-1990), Rumbelows Cup (1990-1992), Coca-Cola Cup (1992-1998), Worthington Cup (1998-2003), Carling Cup (2003-2016), and EFL Cup (2016-2017). After Carabao signed a title sponsorship contract in 2017, the current name became established.
Recent developments
As of the 2024-25 season, discussions on reforming the competition's operating format are active in connection with fixture congestion. As the number of matches has surged due to the expansion of European football competitions and the hosting of the Club World Cup, top Premier League clubs have continually raised demands to ease the burden of the League Cup schedule. In response, the EFL is reviewing various measures, such as converting the semi-finals to single matches and abolishing second legs.
In addition, the title sponsorship with Carabao has been renewed on a multi-year basis, and broadcasting rights contracts are also trending toward expanding collaboration with streaming platforms. As the value of the competition as a stage for developing young and emerging players is being reexamined, there are also increasing cases of players from big clubs' youth academies making their debuts through the Carabao Cup. The Wembley final remains a symbolic event that decides an early-season trophy in the English football season.
Related topics
- [[Premier League]]
- [[EFL Championship]]
- [[FA Cup]]
- [[Wembley Stadium]]
- [[English Football League]]