EFL Trophy group stage draw confirmed for 2026/27 season

York City will face Bradford City and Rotherham United in the Group Stage of the 2026/27 EFL Trophy, with one further opponent to be confirmed.

We have been placed in Group C of the Northern Section and will come up against the Bantams, who were beaten in the EFL League One play-offs last season, as well as the recently relegated Millers.

A Premier League U21 side will complete the group, with the full draw to take place live on Sky Sports News at 2:30pm on Thursday 25th June.

DRAW DETAILS

The draw for the Group Stages of the 2026/27 EFL Trophy will take place live on Sky Sports News on Thursday 25th June from 2:30pm.

Presented by Sky Sports’ Dharmesh Sheth, former Bolton Wanderers and West Ham United midfielder Kevin Nolan will join former Ipswich Town and Nottingham Forest defender, Luke Chambers in picking out the balls.

The Group Stage will be split into 16 regional groups of four teams, eight in the Northern region and eight in the Southern region. The 16 invited under-21 teams will be placed into their respective Northern and Southern regional groups, with the 48 EFL Clubs placed into pre-determined Groups prior to the draw.

The pre-determined groups and the ball numbers for the Northern Group Stage Draw are as follows:

NORTHERN SECTION

Group A

• Sheffield Wednesday
• Salford City
• Accrington Stanley

Group B

• Blackpool
• Wigan Athletic
• Crewe Alexandra

Group C

• Bradford City
• York City
• Rotherham United

Group D

• Mansfield Town
• Chesterfield
• Port Vale

Group E

• Stockport County
• Tranmere Rovers
• Shrewsbury Town

Group F

• Burton Albion
• Notts County
• Grimsby Town

Group G

• Barnsley
• Oldham Athletic
• Fleetwood Town

Group H

• Huddersfield Town
• Doncaster Rovers
• Rochdale

Ball Numbers

1. Aston Villa U21
2. Everton U21
3. Leeds United U21
4. Liverpool U21
5. Manchester City U21
6. Newcastle United U21
7. Nottingham Forest U21
8. Sunderland U21

EFL Trophy Group Stage matches will commence in early September, with dates to be confirmed following the EFL’s Fixture Release Day on Thursday 25th June.

ROUND DATES

The round dates for the EFL Trophy have been confirmed as the following:

• Group Stage: From early September
• Round of 32: w/c 7th December
• Round of 16: w/c 11th January
• Quarter Finals: w/c 15th February
• Semi Finals: w/c 8th March
• Final: Sunday 11th April

COMPETITION FORMAT

The top two from each group progress to the knockout stages, with EFL Trophy fixtures remaining regionalised until the Quarter-Final stage.

Matches level after 90 minutes will be determined by penalty kicks up to, and including, the Semi-Final stage.

A period of 30 minutes of extra time will be played in the Final should the match be level after 90 minutes. If still level at the end of extra time, the winners shall be determined by penalty kicks.

HOW TO WATCH

The EFL’s record domestic rights deal with broadcaster Sky Sports will see every EFL Trophy match broadcast live on Sky Sports for fans in the UK.