The English Football League Trophy, known for sponsorship purposes as the Papa Johns Trophy, is an annual English association football knockout competition open to all clubs in levels three and four of the English football pyramid, with the addition of 16 under-21 teams from Premier League and EFL Championship clubs since the 2016–17 season. It is the third most prestigious knockout competition in English football after the FA Cup and the EFL Cup.
Wembley Stadium is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 2002 to 2003. The stadium hosts major football matches including home matches of the England national football team, and the FA Cup Final. Wembley Stadium is owned by the governing body of English football, the Football Association, whose headquarters are in the stadium, through its subsidiary Wembley National Stadium Ltd (WNSL). With 90,000 seats, it is the largest stadium in the UK and the second-largest stadium in Europe.
The 1999–2000 FA Cup was the 119th staging of the FA Cup. Both the semifinals and final of the competition were played at Wembley Stadium for the last time before reconstruction work began. The competition culminated with the final between Chelsea and Aston Villa. The game was won by a goal from Chelsea's Roberto Di Matteo, giving them a 1–0 victory.
The 1994–95 Football League season was the 96th completed season of The Football League. It was the third season of The Football League since the formation of the Premier League. For sponsorship reasons, the league was known as the Endsleigh League.
The 1985–86 FA Cup was the 105th season of the world's oldest knockout football competition, The Football Association Challenge Cup, or FA Cup. The competition was won by Liverpool, who defeated local rivals Everton 3–1 at Wembley in the first ever Merseyside derby final. Liverpool thus became only the fifth club to win the league and FA Cup double.
The 1986–87 FA Cup was the 106th season of the world's oldest football knockout competition, the FA Cup. The competition was won by Coventry City, who beat Tottenham Hotspur 3–2, after extra-time, in the final at Wembley Stadium. It was Tottenham's only defeat in eight finals up to that point. The tournament started in August 1986, with non-league teams competing in the qualifying rounds.
The 1922–23 FA Cup was the 48th season of the world's oldest association football competition, the Football Association Challenge Cup. Bolton Wanderers won the competition, beating West Ham United 2–0 in the first final to be held at Wembley Stadium, London.
The 1925–26 FA Cup was the 51st staging of the world's oldest football cup competition, the Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup. Bolton Wanderers won the competition for the second time, beating Manchester City 1–0 in the final at Wembley.
The Football League play-offs for the 2007–08 season were held in May 2008, with the finals taking place at Wembley Stadium in London. The play-off semi-finals were played over two legs and were contested by the teams who finished in 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th place in the Football League Championship and League One tables, and the 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th placed teams in League Two. The semi-final winners progressed to the finals, with the winner of each match earning promotion for the following season.
The 2000 Football League Trophy Final was the 17th final of the domestic football cup competition for teams from the Second and Third Division of the Football League. The match was played at Wembley on 16 April 2000, and was the last Football League Trophy final to be played there before the stadium closed for redevelopment. The match was contested by Bristol City and Stoke City. The match was won by Stoke City, with Graham Kavanagh and Peter Thorne scoring in the 2–1 victory.
The 1987 Associate Members' Cup Final, known as the Freight Rover Trophy for sponsorship reasons, was the 4th final of the domestic football cup competition for teams from the Third Division and Fourth Division. The final was played at Wembley Stadium, London on 24 May 1987, and was contested by Bristol City and Mansfield Town. With the score tied at 1–1 after extra time, Mansfield Town won the match in a penalty shootout.
The 1990 Associate Members' Cup Final, known as the Leyland DAF Cup for sponsorship reasons, was the 7th final of the domestic football cup competition for teams from the Third Division and Fourth Division. The final was played at Wembley Stadium, London on 20 May 1990, and was contested by Tranmere Rovers and Bristol Rovers. Tranmere won the match 2–1, with Ian Muir and Jim Steel scoring the goals for the winning team.
The 1995–96 Football League Cup was the 36th Football League Cup, a knockout competition for England's top 92 football clubs.
The 1980–81 Football League Cup was the 21st season of the Football League Cup, a knockout competition for England's top 92 football clubs. The competition started on 8 August 1980 and ended with the final replay on 1 April 1981.
The 1990–91 Football League Cup was the 31st season of the Football League Cup, a knockout competition for England's top 92 association football clubs.
The 1988–89 Football League Cup was the 29th season of the Football League Cup, a knockout competition for England's top 92 football clubs. The competition started on 29 August 1988 and ended with the final on 9 April 1989.
The 1985–86 Associate Members' Cup, known as the 1985–86 Freight Rover Trophy, was the third staging of the Associate Members' Cup, a knock-out competition for English football clubs in the Third Division and the Fourth Division. The winners were Bristol City and the runners-up were Bolton Wanderers.
The 1986–87 Associate Members' Cup, known as the 1986–87 Freight Rover Trophy, was the fourth staging of the Associate Members' Cup, a knock-out competition for English football clubs in the Third Division and the Fourth Division. The winners were Mansfield Town and the runners-up were Bristol City.
The 1998 Football League Second Division play-off Final was an association football match which was played on 24 May 1998 at Wembley Stadium, London, between Grimsby Town and Northampton Town. The top two teams of the 1997–98 Football League Second Division league, Watford and Bristol City, gained automatic promotion to the First Division, while those placed from third to sixth place in the table took part in play-offs. The winners of the play-off semi-finals competed for the final place for the 1998–99 season in the First Division. The losing semi-finalists were Bristol Rovers and Fulham who had been defeated by Northampton and Grimsby respectively.
The 2018 EFL Cup Final was the final association football match of the 2017–18 EFL Cup that took place on 25 February 2018 at Wembley Stadium. It was the first League Cup final contested under the "Carabao Cup" name following the sponsorship of Carabao Energy Drink. It was contested between Manchester City and Arsenal, and won 3–0 by Manchester City. They would have entered the second qualifying round of the 2018–19 UEFA Europa League, but instead qualified directly for the 2018–19 UEFA Champions League by finishing first in the 2017–18 Premier League.
