Why are the Carabao Cup semi-finals played over two legs?

The EFL Cup, known historically as the League Cup and currently as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is the first major trophy up for grabs in the domestic English soccer season, with the 2023-24 competition reaching its conclusion.

Premier League leaders Liverpool will hope to win the tournament for a record-extending 10th time, while semi-final opponents Fulham have never reached the final. In the other last-four clash, five-time winners Chelsea face Championship side Middlesbrough, who reached three finals between 1996-97 and 2003-04, winning the last of them.

League Cup tradition

For most domestic cup ties in most countries, the saying “anything can happen in a one-off game” often applies. But that is famously not the case in the EFL Cup semi-finals. The five previous rounds were all made up of single-leg matches played at the home of one of the two participants. The final will, of course, be a one-off match played at Wembley Stadium.

But the last four will see the qualified teams go head to head over two legs, one at the home of each. Why? “Because it’s always been like that” seems to be the most straightforward answer.

Since the EFL Cup was formed in 1960-61, the semi-finals have always been played over two legs, which was also the case for some of the other rounds at different points in the competition’s history. For instance, the first six finals were two-legged affairs, as was the first round between 1975-76 and 2000-01.

What tie-breaker is used in the Carabao Cup semi-finals?

The semi-finals also differ from earlier rounds in that extra time (two periods of 15 minutes) and potentially a penalty shootout take place if a tie is level after 180 minutes. That is also the case in the final after 90 minutes. Between round one and the quarter-finals, no extra time is played if the teams are level, with the Game going straight to penalties.

2023-24 Carabao Cup semi-finals: fixtures, dates, kick-off times

When is the 2023-24 Carabao Cup final?

The 2023-24 Carabao Cup final will be a one-off Game played at Wembley Stadium in London on Sunday 25 February 2024.