EFL Announce Third-Round Draw Details in 2025-26 Carabao Cup

EFL have announced details of the third-round draw in 2025-26 Carabao Cup. 

This round sees Arsenal, Aston Villa, Chelsea, Crystal Palace, Liverpool, Manchester City, reigning champions – Newcastle United, Nottingham Forest and Tottenham Hotspur enter the competition, having received byes to this stage due to having achieved European qualification at end of last season.

Those nine clubs will be placed as ball numbers; 1, 2, 9, 10, 14,1 5, 17. 18 and 24 respectively, with each team aside from Crystal Palace placed in Bowl One to ensure that they don’t meet in this round, due to their respective involvement in Champions League and Europa League competitions at the same time.

Elsewhere, Bradford’s reward for cupsetting Championship leaders, Stoke City, is ball number 4, whilst Huddersfield will be ball number 12 after the Terriers eliminated Sunderland on penalties after a 1-1 draw on Wearside.

Wycombe will be ball number 28 after the Chairboys scraped past Bromley in sudden death on penalties, following a 1-1 draw at the Copperjax Community Stadium.

The draw will take place upon the conclusion of Grimsby’s second round tie against Manchester United live on Sky Sports tonight (27 August), although ITV will too broadcast the match but the third-round draw is exclusive to Sky.

There however will be a pre-match draw to determine the home and away positioning of those involved in Champions League and Europa League, with the first eight ties of the main draw alternating between both bowls before the remainder of the ties are drawn from Bowl 2.

Crystal Palace won’t be involved in that particular pre-match section because if they reach the UEFA Conference League’s League Phase, there are no scheduling implications unlike for those involved in Champions League and Europa League.