Carabao Cup final result could create never-before-seen scenario in the Premier League and every club is impacted
The result of the Carabao Cup final could create an unlikely but never-before-seen scenario in the Premier League - and it could impact on all 20 clubs.
Liverpool took on Newcastle at Wembley Stadium on Sunday, with both teams attempting to capture the first domestic silverware of the 2024/25 season.
The match was won 2-1 by Newcastle, who lifted their first trophy of any kind - barring league titles - since the 1969 Fairs Cup.
The Reds lifted the trophy last season under Jurgen Klopp, but it was Newcastle who reversed the result from the 2023 Carabao Cup final, when they lost 2-0 to Manchester United.
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The winner of the final will now earn qualification for next season's Conference League, effectively Europe's third-tier competition.
But should Newcastle qualify for either the Europa League or Champions League through their finishing position in the Premier League, the qualification spot would get handed down to the team that finishes seventh or eighth in the table.
As things stand, four teams will qualify for next season's Champions League.
But England could earn a fifth qualification spot through UEFA's new co-efficient system. Put simply, the Premier League clubs competing in European football this season must finish in the top two positions when it comes to combined European performances compared to other nations.
With Arsenal, Aston Villa, Manchester United, Tottenham and Chelsea all through to the quarter-finals of their respective competitions, it would take a dramatic set of results for England not to earn a fifth spot.
That's where things start to get more complicated and extremely specific - and the Premier League have worked out the permutations. Here goes...
Regardless of the winner of the final, the top four clubs would need to be Liverpool, Arsenal, Nottingham Forest and Manchester City for the never-before-seen scenario to occur.
Newcastle would then need to finish in fifth place, thus earning Champions League football as the fifth team and giving up their Conference League spot.
In sixth place would then need to be Brighton, with Bournemouth finishing seventh.
Andoni Iraola's side would be required to win the FA Cup, with the Cherries one of eight teams remaining in this season's competition. They face Manchester City in the quarter-finals at Dean Court later this month.
Then, an eighth-placed finish for Chelsea, along with winning the Conference League this season, would also qualify them for the Europa League.
Aston Villa can also qualify for the Champions League by winning the competition.
At this point, there would be six English teams in the Champions League, three in the Europa League and one in the Conference League.
Manchester United or Tottenham Hotspur - who are both out of European contention in terms of finishing position - can then qualify for the Champions League by winning this season's Europa League.
That would mean an unprecedented seven different teams would be competing in the Champions League next season.
But that's not all.
As all of the top 10 teams would have qualified for a higher European competition - and with the FA requiring that the Carabao Cup qualification spot is handed out - the team who finish in 11th place would be given the Conference League spot.
While teams in the bottom half of the Premier League - and even the Championship - have qualified for Europe before by winning cup competitions, this would be the first time it has happened via league position alone.
Any club in the bottom half can still mathematically finish in 11th place, though fans of Ipswich, Leicester and Southampton can probably discard such a possibility.
It's an extremely unlikely scenario - but if you are a fan of the likes of Everton, Fulham, Brentford or Crystal Palace, you might just be keeping one eye on it.
Topics: Carabao Cup, Premier League, Liverpool, Arsenal, Chelsea, Newcastle United, Aston Villa, Tottenham Hotspur, Nottingham Forest, Man Utd
Ryan Smart