Nottm Forest Leeds: EFL Cup date, stats and TV tonight
Nottm Forest Leeds meet again in the EFL Cup second round on Tuesday 25 August 2026 at 8pm BST at the City Ground. Leeds won 1-0 in the Premier League days earlier through an Anton Stach free-kick. The rematch is live on ITV1 and Sky Sports, with Andrew Kitchen appointed referee.
Key Takeaways
- Forest host Leeds in the EFL Cup second round at the City Ground on 25 August 2026, kick-off 8pm BST.
- Leeds beat Forest 1-0 in the Premier League opener under new Forest boss Oliver Glasner via Stach's free-kick.
- Both sides have struggled deep in this competition lately; Forest have not passed the third round since their 2022-23 semi-final run.
- Andrew Kitchen referees; assistants Mark Stevens and Alex James, with Stephen Parkinson as fourth official and no VAR.
- Both teams have scored in three of the last four head-to-heads.
When and where is Nottm Forest vs Leeds tonight?
According to Racing Post, Nottingham Forest face Leeds United in the EFL Cup second round on Tuesday 25 August at the City Ground in Nottingham.
Kick-off is 8pm BST. UK viewers can follow the tie on ITV1, Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports Football.
The cup fixture comes just three days after the same clubs met in the Premier League. More viral sports round-ups live in our Bizarre News & Florida Man hub.
How do their recent League Cup records compare?
Racing Post notes that neither club has enjoyed much recent success in the competition. Leeds have reached the fourth round in just one of the last eight editions and were knocked out by Sheffield Wednesday, Middlesbrough and Salford across the last three campaigns.
Forest reached the semi-finals in 2022-23 before losing to Manchester United, but have failed to get past the third round since. Four of Leeds' last seven EFL Cup exits have come via penalty shootouts.
Forest are also winless in their last five competitive games heading into the rematch, while both managers favour a broadly similar 3-4-2-1 shape.
What does the recent head-to-head say?
There was little to separate the sides in last season's Premier League meetings, and the opening-weekend rematch was another tight contest until Stach's free-kick sealed a 1-0 away win for Daniel Farke's Leeds.
Key markers from Racing Post include both teams scoring in three of the last four head-to-heads, and Forest hitting the woodwork twice in Saturday's league clash. Harry Wilson nearly scored on his Leeds debut before an offside call.
Team news flags Nicolo Savona and Ryan Yates as absent for Forest, while Leeds are without Gabriel Gudmundsson, Mateo Joseph, Ilia Gruev and Willy Gnonto.
Who is refereeing the City Ground cup tie?
Leeds United confirmed Andrew Kitchen will take charge. Mark Stevens and Alex James run the lines, with Stephen Parkinson as fourth official. VAR is not in operation at this stage of the EFL Cup.
Kitchen has overseen two matches this campaign with eight yellow cards and no reds. It will be only his third Whites game, after a Huddersfield draw in 2023/24 and a Middlesbrough win the following season.