The round dates for the 2025/26 Emirates FA Cup and Carabao Cups have been confirmed.
Emirates FA Cup
The first date of note for Imps fans will be the first round proper, with ties to be played over the weekend of 1 November 2025.
Round dates:
First round: Saturday 1 November 2025
Second round: Saturday 6 December 2025
Third round: Saturday 10 January 2026
Fourth round: Saturday 14 February 2026
Fifth round: Saturday 7 March 2026
Quarter final: Saturday 4 April 2026
Semi-final: Saturday 25 April 2026
Final: Saturday 16 May 2026
Carabao Cup
The format for the 2025/26 Carabao Cup has also been confirmed. This year’s instalment of the competition will require a preliminary round ahead of round one, due to nine English teams being involved in European competitions.
The format has been amended to include a four-team preliminary round, which will consist of the two promoted clubs from the National League (Barnet and Oldham Athletic) and the clubs finishing in 21st and 22nd place in Sky Bet League Two (Accrington Stanley and Newport County). The ties will be regionalised north and south as per round one, with Accrington playing Oldham and Barnet playing Newport County.
The Carabao Cup round one draw will take place live on Sky Sports News at 4.30pm on Thursday 26 June, as part of the EFL’s fixture release day.
The preliminary round of the competition will also be drawn at this time to determine the home clubs for the two ties.
Round dates:
Preliminary round: w/c 4 August 2025
Round one: w/c 11 August 2025
Round two: w/c 25 August 2025
Round three: w/c 15 September and w/c 22 September 2025*
Round four: w/c 27 October 2025
Round five: w/c 15 December 2025
Semi-final first leg: w/c 12 January 2026
Semi-final second leg: w/c 2 February 2026
Final: Sunday 22 March 2026
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