The 1989–90 Football League Cup (known as the
Littlewoods
Littlewoods was a retail and football betting company founded in Liverpool, England, by John Moores in 1923. By the 1980s, it had grown to become the largest private company in Europe, but subsequently declined in the face of increased com ...
Challenge Cup for sponsorship reasons) was the 30th season of the
Football League Cup
The EFL Cup (referred to historically, and colloquially, as the League Cup), currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual knockout competition and major trophy in men's domestic football in England. Organised by the ...
, a knockout competition for England's top 92 football clubs.
The competition began on 21 August 1989, and ended with the final on 29 April 1990 at the
Old Wembley Stadium
The original Wembley Stadium (; originally known as the Empire Stadium) was a stadium in Wembley, London, best known for hosting important football matches. It stood on the same site now occupied by its successor.
Wembley hosted the FA Cup f ...
. The cup was won by
Nottingham Forest
Nottingham Forest Football Club is an association football club based in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England. Nottingham Forest was founded in 1865 and have been playing their home games at the City Ground, on the banks of the River Tren ...
who beat
Oldham Athletic
Oldham Athletic Association Football Club is a professional football club in Oldham, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system.
The history of Oldham Athletic ...
in the
final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event
** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...
, who regained the trophy after winning it the previous season. This was the second time that
Nottingham Forest
Nottingham Forest Football Club is an association football club based in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England. Nottingham Forest was founded in 1865 and have been playing their home games at the City Ground, on the banks of the River Tren ...
had won the trophy in successive seasons, having won previously in 1978 and 1979.
First round
A total of 56 teams took part in the First Round. All of the
Third Division
In sport, the Third Division, also called Division 3, Division Three, or Division III, is often the third-highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below.
Association football
*Belgian Thir ...
and
Fourth Division
Fourth or the fourth may refer to:
* the ordinal form of the number 4
* ''Fourth'' (album), by Soft Machine, 1971
* Fourth (angle), an ancient astronomical subdivision
* Fourth (music), a musical interval
* ''The Fourth'' (1972 film), a Sovie ...
sides entered, with eight of the
Second Division
In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...
clubs also starting in this round. The eight clubs consisted of the three teams promoted from the Third Division and the five teams finishing 17th to 21st in the Second Division from the
1988–89 season. Each tie was played across two legs.
First Leg
Second Leg
Second round
A total of 64 teams took part in the Second Round, including the 28 winners from round one. The remaining
Second Division
In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...
clubs entered in this round, as well as the 20 sides from the
First Division. Each tie was again played across two legs.
First Leg
Second Leg
Third round
A total of 32 teams took part in the Third Round, all 32 winners from round two. Unlike the previous two rounds, this round was played over one leg.
Frank Bunn
Frank Stephen Bunn (born 6 November 1962) is an English former professional footballer who is currently the U23 coach of League One club Wigan Athletic. He holds the Football League Cup record for the most goals (six) by a player in a single match ...
scores a new League Cup record six goals in
Oldham's 7–0 victory over
Scarborough Scarborough or Scarboro may refer to:
People
* Scarborough (surname)
* Earl of Scarbrough
Places Australia
* Scarborough, Western Australia, suburb of Perth
* Scarborough, New South Wales, suburb of Wollongong
* Scarborough, Queensland, sub ...
.
Ties
Replays
2nd Replay
3rd Replay
Fourth round
A total of 16 teams took part in the Fourth Round, all 16 winners from round three. Once again this round was played over one leg.
Ties
Replays
Fifth round
The eight winners from the Fourth Round took part in the Fifth Round. Once again this round was played over one leg.
Ties
Replays
2nd Replay
Semi-finals
As with the first two rounds, the semi-final ties were played over two legs. Holders Nottingham Forest narrowly defeated Coventry City, while West Ham United bowed out in the semi-finals for the second year running, this time at the hands of Oldham Athletic 6–3 on aggregate. Oldham's 6-0 first leg victory all but sealed their first ever appearance in a major final and at Wembley, was a record for a league cup semi-final until Manchester City defeated Burton Albion 9–0 in the first-leg of the semi-final tie in 2019. Five years earlier, in 2014, City had equaled Oldham's record, again at the expense of West Ham, with a 6-0 first-leg semi-final victory, and on that occasion City's 3–0 win in the second leg at Upton Park had set a record for an aggregate victory (9-0) which City themselves surpassed in 2019 with a 1-0 second-leg win at Burton for a 10-0 aggregate semi-final win.
First leg
Second leg
''Nottingham Forest won 2–1 on aggregate.''
''Oldham Athletic won 6–3 on aggregate.''
Final
References
General
*
*
*
Specific
External links
Official Carling Cup website
{{DEFAULTSORT:1989-90 Football League Cup
EFL Cup seasons
1989–90 domestic association football cups
Lea
Lea or LEA may refer to:
Places Australia
* Lea River, Tasmania, Australia
* Lake Lea, Tasmania, from which the Lea River flows
* RAAF Base Learmonth, IATA airport code "LEA"
England
* Lea, Cheshire, a civil parish
* Lea, Derbyshire, a settl ...
Cup
A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, china, clay, ...