The Carabao Cup third round draw takes place this evening (PA Archive)The Carabao Cup gathers pace tonight when the third round ties are decided to complete the Premier League’s involvement in the competition. So far the nine Premier League teams in Europe have sat out as the second round edges towards completion, but holders Manchester City, Arsenal, who lost to City in last season’s final, Manchester United, Aston Villa, Liverpool, Bournemouth, Sunderland, Brighton and Crystal Palace will all learn their third-round opponents tonight. There is a pre-draw though, with those aforementioned teams set to be separated in order to avoid a clash in Uefa competitions.While the draw will be completed before Chelsea face Luton and Fulham face AFC Wimbledon to conclude the second round. Follow all the build-up and live updates from tonight’s ties below:Carabao Cup draw: What games are on tonight? There are four more games tonight and another two tomorrow. David Moyes takes his Everton side back to where his managerial career started at Preston, Matthias Jaissle bids for a first competitive win as Newcastle boss at home to West Brom, while Tottenham host Charlton. To think that was almost a Championship fixture this season. There are two games tomorrow, too, due to Sky Sports scheduling Fulham and Chelsea in their first Monday Night Football of the season. They are both at home, with games against Luton and Wimbledon kicking off in west London. Wednesday 28 AugustBradford City v Burnley Newcastle United v West Bromwich Albion Preston North End v Everton Tottenham Hotspur v Charlton Athletic(PA Wire)Thursday 27 AugustChelsea v Luton TownFulham v AFC Wimbledon (PA Wire)Jamie Braidwood26 August 2026 18:30Carabao Cup draw: Last night's second-round resultsIt was another good away day for Leeds as they won at Nottingham Forest for the second time in four days, while Hull avoided an exit as they scraped past Stoke on penalties. Fleetwood Town are the only fourth-tier side through after thumping Shrewsbury Town, also of League Two, while Brentford were back among the goals as they thrashed Birmingham 6-1. Northern SectionDoncaster Rovers 1–3 Middlesbrough Barnsley 3–2 Crewe AlexandraBlackburn Rovers 1–2 Sheffield United Blackpool 1–4 Lincoln CityFleetwood Town 4–0 Shrewsbury TownSheffield Wednesday 0–2 Wolverhampton Wanderers Stoke City 1–1 (4–5 p) Hull City Nottingham Forest 0–2 Leeds UnitedSouthern Section Cardiff City 1−2 Norwich CityCambridge United 0–1 MillwallIpswich Town 3–1 Leicester CityPlymouth Argyle 2–4 Coventry CitySouthampton 1–4 West Ham UnitedStevenage 0–3 ReadingWalsall 0–0(5–6p) Leyton Orient Watford 1–5 Peterborough UnitedBirmingham City 1–6 Brentford Daniel James of Leeds United celebrates scoring his team’s second goal with teammate Lukas Nmecha (Getty)Jamie Braidwood26 August 2026 18:20When is Carabao Cup third round draw? The draw for the Carabao Cup third round will take place today, Wednesday 26 August. The main draw will follow the conclusion of the second round tie between Preston and Everton which kicks off at 8pm BST, meaning the draw could start at around 10.15pm BST.There is a pre-draw before kick-off at Deepdale, which will determine whether the Premier League sides in Europe will be home or away. Coverage starts at 7pm BST, meaning the pre-draw is likely to take place at around 7:30pm BST.Jack Rathborn26 August 2026 18:10What teams are still in the Carabao Cup? Ball numbers for third round draw1 AFC Bournemouth2 Arsenal3 Aston Villa4 Crystal Palace5 Manchester City6 Manchester United7 Liverpool8 Sunderland9 Barnsley10 Brentford11 Brighton & Hove Albion12 Coventry City13 Fleetwood Town14 Hull City15 Ipswich Town16 Leeds United17 Leyton Orient18 Lincoln City19 Middlesbrough20 Millwall21 Norwich City22 Peterborough United23 Reading24 Sheffield United25 West Ham United26 Wolve rhampton Wanderers27 Bradford City / Burnley28 Newcastle United / West Bromwich Albion29 Tottenham Hotspur / Charlton Athletic30 Preston North End / Everton31 Chelsea / Luton Town32 Fulham / AFC WimbledonJack Rathborn26 August 2026 18:05How will the Carabao Cup third round draw work? Pre-drawBefore the main draw, there is a pre-draw to decide if the eight Champions League and Europa League clubs will be at home or away. This part is before Preston North End’s Round Two tie against Everton on Sky Sports. Main drawThe main draw will take place following the conclusion of Round Two tie, the first eight ties will involve those Champions League and Europa League clubs. Their home or away position will have already having been decided. They will then be drawn against a team in a separate bowl with the remaining teams in the competition – so cannot meet one another at this stage.Following the conclusion of those eight ties being drawn, the final eight ties will be drawn as normal.From Round Three onwards, there is no longer a divide between the Northern and Southern sections.Jack Rathborn26 August 2026 18:00Good evening!Welcome to The Independent’s coverage of tonight’s Carabao Cup third round draw. All of the second round ties are being played during this week with four more matches taking place tonight ahead of the draw for the third round. Those Premier League sides who are participating in European competition will enter the tournament in this round including the likes of Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester United. We’ll take you through all the updates from tonight’s matches as well as the draw itself so stick with us for all the details you’ll need. Mike Jones26 August 2026 17:58