Grimsby Town will discover their final opponents in the Group Stage of the 2026/27 EFL Trophy when the draw takes place live on Sky Sports News this afternoon.

The draw, which begins at 2:30pm, will determine which Premier League Under-21 side joins the Mariners in Northern Group F.

Town have already been placed in a group alongside fellow EFL clubs Burton Albion and Notts County, with one invited academy side completing the quartet.

The eight Premier League Under-21 teams in the Northern Section draw are:

• Aston Villa U21
• Everton U21
• Leeds United U21
• Liverpool U21
• Manchester City U21
• Newcastle United U21
• Nottingham Forest U21
• Sunderland U21

Northern Group F

The Mariners have been pre-allocated to Northern Group F alongside:

• Burton Albion
• Notts County
• One Premier League Under-21 side (to be confirmed)

The draw will be conducted by former Bolton Wanderers and West Ham United midfielder Kevin Nolan and former Ipswich Town and Nottingham Forest defender Luke Chambers, with Sky Sports’ Dharmesh Sheth hosting proceedings.

Competition Format

The EFL Trophy will once again feature 64 teams, comprising all 48 clubs from Sky Bet League One and Sky Bet League Two, alongside 16 invited Premier League academy teams.

The competition is split into Northern and Southern sections, with teams placed into regional groups to minimise travel and maximise player recovery time.

Each group consists of four teams, with the top two progressing to the knockout stages.

The competition remains regionalised until the Quarter-Final stage.

Should matches finish level after 90 minutes during the Group Stage and knockout rounds up to the Semi-Finals, the winner will be determined by a penalty shootout.

Key Dates

The round dates for the 2026/27 EFL Trophy have been confirmed as:

• Group Stage – From early September
• Round of 32 – Week commencing 7 December
• Round of 16 – Week commencing 11 January
• Quarter-Finals – Week commencing 15 February
• Semi-Finals – Week commencing 8 March
• Final – Sunday 11 April

Group Stage fixture dates will be confirmed following today’s EFL fixture release.

How To Watch

Supporters can follow the draw live on Sky Sports News from 2:30pm.

As part of the EFL’s new domestic broadcast agreement with Sky Sports, every match in this season’s EFL Trophy will also be shown live on Sky Sports.

Stay tuned to our official channels for confirmation of the Mariners’ final Group Stage opponents.

UTM