EFL accuses UEFA of refusing to co-operate as Champions League forces Carabao Cup fixture chaos

The EFL has issued a stinging rebuke of UEFA after being forced to reschedule several Carabao Cup third-round fixtures at short notice, blaming Europe’s governing body for refusing to find a workable compromise over Champions League scheduling conflicts.

Just three days after the EFL confirmed the dates and times of the third-round ties, the organisation announced a series of changes that it says stem directly from UEFA’s refusal to consider rescheduling any of its own fixtures. Five clubs — Liverpool, Tottenham, Everton, Wolves and Portsmouth — have been caught up in the disruption.

Liverpool’s Carabao Cup tie with Tottenham, originally set for Wednesday 17 September, has been moved forward 24 hours to Tuesday 16 September. Everton’s home game against Wolves, initially scheduled for Wednesday 10 September, has been pushed back a full week. The reason in both cases is that Liverpool are playing Atlético Madrid on 10 September, and Merseyside policing rules prevent Liverpool and Everton from hosting matches on the same evening.

The knock-on effect has hit Wolves particularly hard. The rescheduling of their Everton tie has in turn forced a change to their EFL Championship fixture against Portsmouth, which was originally set for Wednesday 17 September but will now not be played until Tuesday 21 October — a delay of more than a month.

In a formal statement, the EFL made clear it holds UEFA responsible. “Over recent seasons the League has made a number of changes to accommodate the expansion of UEFA Club competitions — a decision which was made without adequate consultation with domestic leagues,” it said. “These changes have included splitting Carabao Cup Round Three ties across two weeks, and implementing draw conditions for Round Three which prevent scheduling conflicts for clubs playing in the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League. This makes UEFA’s unwillingness to co-operate all the more frustrating, not least for the supporters of the five impacted clubs, and we sincerely apologise for the inconvenience caused.”

The EFL also confirmed that it met with UEFA officials on Monday morning in an attempt to find a solution, but said those talks ended without progress. “It was made clear that they were unwilling to consider rescheduling the Liverpool v Atlético Madrid fixture due to the impact on supporters travelling from overseas,” the statement read. “Disappointingly, the League has therefore been forced to make changes.”

The dispute highlights the growing tension between UEFA’s expanded club competition calendar — which was introduced without a formal agreement with domestic leagues — and the scheduling demands placed on English football’s lower tiers.