Preston North End to find out Carabao Cup opponents as Championship fixtures announced

The EFL have confirmed that as a part of their fixture release day on Thursday, June 22, the first round draw for the Carabao Cup and Group Stage draw for the EFL Trophy will take place live on Sky Sports.

The draw will take place live at 2:30pm, with the fixtures for the league season, across the Championship, League One and League Two released at 9am that morning.

The first round draw will see teams drawn in Northern and Southern sections, with matches scheduled to take place week commencing August 7.

There will be a total of 36 fixtures in the first round, with all 72 EFL clubs involved, before Premier League sides not competing in European competitions are entered in the second round, with the big hitters of the top flight coming in for the third round.

Last season PNE beat Huddersfield Town 4-1 in the first round, Ali McCann scoring twice as well as Brad Potts and Troy Parrott.

That win set up a second round tie with Premier League Wolverhampton Wanderers, who won 2-1 thanks to an Adama Traore stunner despite Ben Woodburn’s goal for the Lilywhites.

North End have reached the fourth round in two of the last three season, meeting Liverpool and Brighton and Hove Albion two and three seasons ago. New Liverpool signing Alexis Mac Allister scored for the Seagulls in a 2-0 win in 2020 whilst Divock Origi’s impressive improvised finished help the Merseyside club to a 2-0 win in 2021.