EFL Cup draw: Chelsea, Fulham ties lead to Premier League, League One fixture headaches

Chelsea, Fulham and a number of League One clubs face the prospect of fixture rescheduling at short notice thanks to Monday's EFL Cup second round draw.

When the Premier League schedule was announced in June, it was highlighted by Sports Mole that Sky Sports choosing to broadcast Fulham versus Chelsea on Monday, August 24 was a bizarre decision.

With Chelsea and Fulham not qualifying for European competition, the Monday date essentially meant that they would play their EFL Cup second-round ties on a Thursday night.

As a result, the Premier League matchday two fixtures of Chelsea and Fulham were each moved to a Sunday to accommodate that inevitability.

However, the Premier League and EFL have seemingly failed to take into account what would happen should Chelsea and Fulham both get drawn at home in the EFL Cup second round.

Why Chelsea, Fulham EFL Cup ties will cause headache for Premier League, EFL

Chelsea will host Luton Town and Fulham will welcome AFC Wimbledon to Craven Cottage. However, the close proximity of the two grounds usually leads to police ensuring that the two teams cannot host games on the same day, especially the same kickoff time.

In this instance, Chelsea or Fulham face the possibility of playing their EFL Cup second round tie just 48 hours after their Premier League opener unless police make an exception.

The complications continue due to Luton and AFC Wimbledon being scheduled to play Wigan Athletic and Mansfield Town on the Saturday.

Therefore, as it stands, two of Chelsea, Fulham, Luton and AFC Wimbledon will only have 48 hours rest between two fixtures.

With Sky Sports having Fulham versus Chelsea on their schedule since the middle of June, they will likely argue that it is up to the EFL to find a solution.

Furthermore, the EFL must also deal with a full schedule of League One games due to take place on September 1.

While it would make sense for AFC Wimbledon's trip to Burton Albion and Luton's home game with Stockport County to be put back 24 hours to September 2, there is still the inevitability of clubs and supporters being inconvenienced if police keep with their long-standing regulations.

What is the best solution for EFL?

In the event that Chelsea and Fulham - separated by two miles - cannot play on Thursday, August 27, the EFL will have to consider moving Luton's and AFC Wimbledon's following two games back by 24 hours.

However, another issue comes from that Sunday being a Bank Holiday. Luton fans taking public transport to Mansfield could be impacted, as could Wigan Athletic fans making the long trip to AFC Wimbledon.

With Chelsea against Brighton & Hove Albion on that day having been chosen for Sky Sports coverage, that is unlikely to be moved to the Monday, with Aston Villa versus Arsenal already taking place on that day.

Fulham are due to face the long trip to Sunderland for a game on the Sunday. They will make the argument to the governing bodies that they will have to travel to the North-East on the Saturday.

Regardless of the outcome, the EFL faces upsetting at least one club and fans alike in a complex situation that could have been avoided by Sky Sports scheduling Fulham against Chelsea on Sunday, August 23 with a 2pm kickoff, like they did for an Easter Sunday game in April 2025.