For the first time ever, the draw of the Carabao Cup will be streamed live to a global audience on Twitter, making it the first major English footballing competition draw to be exclusively broadcast on the platform.
Fans will be able to watch the Round Five draw unfold live on Twitter from 4pm GMT on Thursday 26th October. The proceedings will be hosted by TalkSPORT commentator Sam Matterface, who will be joined by British sporting royalty Phil Tufnell and Matt Dawson.
The Round Five draw will comprise of eight clubs and will determine the competition’s Quarter-Final fixtures to take place in December, with the Final being held at Wembley on Sunday 25th February.
#CarabaoCup Round Five Draw:
— Carabao Cup (@Carabao_Cup) October 26, 2017
🗓 TODAY!
🕓 4PM BST
🎥 LIVE on Twitter 👇🏽https://t.co/ufq6YOpN7r
This isn’t the first major innovation from Twitter and EFL. Back in 2015, fans were given the chance to light up the iconic Wembley Arch in their club’s colours with #OwnTheArch. Chelsea may have sealed the final on the pitch, but Tottenham clinched a narrow 51-49% victory in the Twitter vote.
The draw will take place at Twitter’s UK hub in central London. Employing over 200 people, Twitter UK has the largest engineering base outside of its San Francisco headquarters, including leading the company’s live video output.
The Round Five ties will be played week commencing 18th December with two selections live on Sky Sports, the home of the Carabao Cup for the next five seasons.
In Round Four, viewers tuned in to see Manchester United beat Swansea City at the Liberty Stadium, whilst West Ham United fought back to beat Tottenham Hotspur at Wembley.
EFL Chief Executive Shaun Harvey said: “The EFL prides itself on being innovative and not being afraid to try something new if we believe it has the potential to increase exposure and awareness of our competitions at home and abroad.
“We are therefore excited to team up with Twitter to give fans of EFL clubs across the world access to the Round Five draw via their new live streaming service. It’s the first time a major cup draw in the UK has been broadcast exclusively live on the social media network and presents us with a rare opportunity to engage with a global fan base alongside being able to continue the debate immediately after the ties are determined.
“This is an exciting stage of the Carabao Cup competition with all sides involved edging ever closer to a day out at Wembley and picking up that first piece of silverware of the domestic season in England.“
Bruna Zanin, Sports Partnerships Manager at Twitter UK said: “We are thrilled that fans around the world will be able to watch and join the conversation around the Round Five Draw as it unfolds live on Twitter. EFL have always been incredibly innovative in their use of Twitter, so it felt like a natural fit to collaborate with them to exclusively broadcast a draw of this kind for the first time.”
David Butcher, Managing Director of Carabao Energy Drink UK&I said, “In our first year as sponsor of the Carabao Cup, Carabao Energy Drink has been doing things differently and, this is a fantastic opportunity for everyone around the world to tune in and find out who their team will take on as we get to the final stages of the Carabao Cup.
“Alongside the EFL and Twitter, we’re excited to be hosting the draw in an entirely new format, and we look forward to joining the conversation in real time with millions of football fans.”
Draw numbers will be made available following the completion of the Round Four fixtures on Wednesday 25th October.
Fans can view the stream via @Carabao_Cup on Twitter, or via the EFL website.