The 2018-19 Carabao Cup has reached its conclusion with Manchester City defeating Chelsea in a penalty shootout in the final.
Pep Guardiola’s side successfully defended their title and lifted their first trophy of the 2018-19 season.
With the tournament having concluded, Goal has your complete guide, including participating teams, game schedules and results.
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Carabao Cup 2018-19 format
All 92 clubs competing in the Premier League and the English Football League enter the 2018-19 EFL Cup, with participation distributed across the divisions.
The competition will be played over seven rounds, with single leg ties throughout, except in the semi-finals.
In round one, the draw will be split into northern and southern clubs with 22 Championship clubs and all League One and League Two clubs entering.
In the second round, the two remaining Championship clubs Swansea and Stoke (who finished 18th and 19th last season in the Premier League) as well as the Premier League clubs not involved in either the Champions League or Europa League will enter.
The likes of Arsenal, Burnley, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur entered the third round due to their participation in Europe.
Carabao Cup 2018-19 final
Manchester City progressed to the final of the Carabao Cup after beating Burton Albion 10-0 on aggregate.
Chelsea beat London rivals Tottenham on penalties in the semi-finals after the two-legged fixture ended in 2-2 in order to secure their place.
The final took place on February 24 with Guardiola’s side clinching their first piece of silverware of the season, as well as defending their 2018 honour.
Carabao Cup 2018-19 semi-final
The draw for the sixth round – or semi-final – of the Carabao Cup was made on December 19, with a London derby between Spurs and Chelsea the more high-profile of the two pairings.
The semi-final will be the only round to take place over two legs, with the first legs set for January 8 and 9 and the return legs scheduled for January 22.
Carabao Cup 2018-19 quarter-final
The draw for the fifth round – or quarter-final – of the Carabao Cup was made on October 31, with Arsenal’s clash against Tottenham the headline fixture.
The matches were played during the week commencing December 17.
Carabao Cup 2018-19 fourth round
The draw for the fourth round of the Carabao Cup was made on September 29, with West Ham hosting Tottenham at London Stadium and Manchester City playing Fulham at home.
Leicester City’s home game against Southampton was postponed following the tragic death of Foxes chairman Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha in a helicopter crash.
Games selected for television coverage were Burton Albion vs Nottingham Forest and Chelsea vs Derby County.
Carabao Cup 2018-19 third round
The draw for the third round of the Carabao Cup was made on August 30, with holders Manchester City defeating Oxford 2-0.
Manchester United crashed out sensationally after losing to Championship side Derby County on penalties.
Carabao Cup 2018-19 second round
50 clubs participated in the second round, with the winners of the first round joined by the two remaining Championship (tier two) clubs – Swansea and Stoke City – along with the 13 Premier League clubs not included in European competition this season.
The Stadium of Light played host to the draw for the second round of the Carabao Cup on August 16 , before Sunderland face Sheffield Wednesday.
Carabao Cup 2018-19 first round
70 clubs participated in the first round, with 24 teams from League Two (tier four), 24 from League One (tier three), and 22 from the Championship (tier two).
The draw for this round was divided between ‘northern’ and ‘southern’ sections, and teams were drawn against a team from the same section.
Carabao Cup 2018-19 new rules
The English Football League (EFL) clubs voted to implement a number of changes to this year’s Carabao Cup at the annual EFL Summer Conference in Portugal, held in June 2018. Extra-time will be abandoned for all rounds except for the final, with ties advancing straight to penalty shoot-outs in the nature that the scoreline is a draw at the end of regular time.
This was introduced in order to limit issues of “additional fatigue”, as Carabao Cup fixtures typically take place in the middle of the week with Premier League matches occurring at the weekend a few days before and after.
The ABBA penalty system trial was also eliminated, with the format for penalty shoot-outs now reverting to the standard ABAB penalty-taker format.
Seeding has also been removed from the first two rounds, though the first round’s organisation relied on a regional basis.
Video assistant refereeing (VAR) has also been implemented for use at fixtures played at Premier League grounds, such as Stamford Bridge or Old Trafford.
Will away goals count in the Carabao Cup semi-final stage?
Following on the abolition of extra-time, starting from the semi-final stage, if both teams are level after the end of full-time during the second leg, the game will go directly into penalty shoot-out with there being no away goals rule implemented this season .
In previous editions of the competition, the away goal rule was administered in the semi-final stage in the same manner as it is used in the Champions League knockout rounds. If, for instance, the away team scored a goal in the first leg that ended in a 1-1 draw, with the second leg ending 0-0, then that team would have progressed to the final courtesy of the away goals rule.
Now, though, no such rule will be considered and second-leg stalemates will be decided ultimately by penalty shoot-out.
As regulation 14.5 of the tournament explains: “In the Semi-Final ties, if the aggregate score is level at the end of the second game no extra time shall be played and the tie shall be decided by the taking of kicks from the penalty mark in accordance with procedures as approved by IFAB.”
Why is the League Cup called the Carabao Cup?
Up until 2016, the tournament was named the English Football League Cup (EFL Cup) instead of the League Cup, following the rebranding of the Football League to the English Football League.
Officially, the EFL Cup is known as the Carabao Cup due to the energy drink being the tournament’s official sponsors. The name changes depending on which brand sponsors the tournament, which is typically a brand of energy or alcoholic drink.
Prior to Carabao’s sponsorship of the tournament starting from 2017, the competition was called the EFL Cup (2016-17), the Capital One Cup (2012-13 and 2015-16), the Carling Cup (sponsored by Molsoon Coors from 2003-04 and 2011-12), the Worthington Cup (sponsored by Worthington’s from 1998-99 and 2002-03), and the Coca-Cola Cup (from 1992-93 and 1997-98).
Carabao & League Cup past winners
Liverpool are the club to have won the EFL Cup the most times, winning their eighth title in 2012 when they defeated Cardiff City on penalties. They have been runners-up in the competition four times, last coming in second in 2016 when they were defeated by Manchester City in the shootout.
Manchester United’s five titles make them the club to have won the trophy the second-highest times in English football, last winning the tournament in 2017.
Aston Villa, Chelsea and defending champions Manchester City have all won the EFL Cup five times each, with Pep Guardiola’s side most recently defeating Arsenal 3-0 in the 2018 Carabao Cup final.
Tottenham and Nottingham Forest have both won the competition four times each, with the win in 2008 being the last time the North London side last lifted a piece of silverware.
Only lists teams who have won it the most times.