SportFootballCarabao CupLIVEUpdated just nowThe World Cup may be commanding everybody's attention, but it's also time for the Carabao Cup first round draw to be carried out ahead of the ties in AugustThe Carabao Cup first round draw will be made today(Image: AFP or licensors)Updated 15:14, 25 Jun 2026The Carabao Cup first round draw will be carried out today. It feels like it's been a lifetime since Manchester City beat Arsenal at Wembley Stadium through two goals from Nico O'Reilly.While the World Cup is commanding everybody's attention, the Carabao Cup will soon be getting underway.By the end of the day, all teams involved will know who they will be facing off in the first round.There are still preliminary rounds to be played with Tranmere Rovers and Rochdale playing on August 1st and York City and Crawley Town facing off on August third.Ahead of the start of the 2026/27 campaign, Mirror Football will be here with any and all updates on the draw.Today15:14 BSTNew additionPuma will provide the match ball for this season's tournament.Content cannot be displayed without consentToday15:11 BSTSouthern ball numbers1 AFC Wimbledon2 Barnet3 Birmingham City4 Bristol City5 Bristol Rovers6 Bromley7 Cambridge United8 Cardiff City9 Charlton Athletic10 Cheltenham Town11 Colchester United12 Exeter City13 Gillingham14 Leicester City15 Leyton Orient16 Luton Town17 Millwall18 Milton Keynes Dons19 Newport County20 Northampton Town21 Norwich City22 Oxford United23 Peterborough United24 Plymouth Argyle25 Portsmouth26 Queens Park Rangers27 Reading28 Southampton29 Stevenage30 Swansea City31 Swindon Town32 Walsall33 Watford34 West Ham United35 Wycombe Wanderers36 York City/Crawley TownToday15:09 BSTNorthern ball numbers1 Accrington Stanley2 Barnsley3 Blackburn Rovers4 Blackpool5 Bolton Wanderers6 Bradford City7 Burnley8 Burton Albion9 Chesterfield10 Crewe Alexandra11 Derby County12 Doncaster Rovers13 Fleetwood Town14 Grimsby Town15 Huddersfield Town16 Lincoln City17 Mansfield Town18 Middlesbrough19 Notts County20 Oldham Athletic21 Port Vale22 Preston North End23 Rotherham United24 Salford City25 Sheffield United26 Sheffield Wednesday27 Shrewsbury Town28 Stockport County29 Stoke City30 West Bromwich Albion31 Wigan Athletic32 Wolverhampton Wanderers33 Wrexham34 Tranmere Rovers/Rochdale‌Today15:05 BSTWho is conducting the draw?Former Bolton Wanderers, Newcastle United and West Ham United midfielder Kevin Nolan will be helping to make the fixtures alongside ex-Ipswich Town and Nottingham Forest defender, Luke Chambers.(Image: Tom Dulat, Getty Images)Today15:03 BSTThe formatThe opening round will play host to 70 teams fighting for a place in the second round. The draw will be regionalised into a Northern and Southern section,68 EFL clubs will be joined by either Tranmere or Rochdale and Crawley or York.Premier League teams will begin to enter the competition in the second round, while those involved in European footbal join during the third round.Today15:00 BSTWhen is the first round?The first round takes place on the first weekend of August to kickstart the season, the week before the EFL gets underway. Check out when each round is scheduled for below:Round One: Weekend of 7-9 August 2026Round Two: w/c 24 August 2026Round Three: w/c 7 September and w/c 14 September 2026Round Four: w/c 26 October 2026Round Five: w/c 14 December 2026Semi-Final First Leg: w/c 11 January 2027Semi-Final Second Leg: w/c 1 February 2027Final: Sunday 21 March 2027‌When is the drawThe draw will take place at 4.30 this afternoon on Sky Sports News. We will also have every fixture as it comes right here in our blog.The draw launches as part of EFL’s Fixture Release Day. The likes of West Ham and Wolves discovered the order of their matches upon returning to the Championship.(Image: Richard Pelham, Getty Images)Preliminary roundWhile the draw for the first round is later today, a preliminary round has already been confirmed. Tranmere face Rochdale on August 1 and Crawley face off against York City two days later.The winners of those ties will join 68 other teams in the opening round. The preliminary round is required because nine Premier League teams are involved in Europe.Good afternoon!Welcome to our coverage of the Carabao Cup draw. It is only June, the World Cup is still in its group stages, but the road to the start of the season is well underway.The Carabao Cup trophy on display(Image: Robbie Jay Barratt - AMA/Getty Images)‌