The 1986–87 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 27th 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 t ...

, a knockout competition for England's top 92 football clubs. The competition began on 25 August 1986, and ended with 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 con ...

on 5 April 1987. The final was played between

Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostl ...

and

Liverpool Liverpool is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the List of English districts by population, 10th largest English district by population and its E ...

. The match, played in front of 96,000 spectators at

Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 200 ...

, was won by Arsenal 2–1.

Luton Town Luton Town Football Club () is a professional association football club based in the town of Luton, Bedfordshire, England, that competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1885, it is nicknam ...

were thrown out of the competition when they refused to allow

Cardiff City Cardiff City Football Club ( cy, Clwb Pêl-droed Dinas Caerdydd) is a professional association football club based in Cardiff, Wales. It competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1899 as R ...

fans to attend the match at Kenilworth Road. This was at the moment when club's then chairman,

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

MP David Evans, tried to introduce a scheme effective from the start of 1986–87 banning all visiting supporters from the ground, and requiring home fans to carry identity cards when attending matches.

First round

First Leg

Second Leg

Second round

First Leg

Second Leg

Luton Town v Cardiff City

were thrown out of the competition when they refused to allow

fans to attend the match at Kenilworth Road. This allowed Cardiff a bye into the Third Round.

Third round

Ties

Replays

Fourth round

Ties

Replay

Fifth Round

Ties

Replay

Semi-finals

North London North London is the northern part of London, England, north of the River Thames. It extends from Clerkenwell and Finsbury, on the edge of the City of London financial district, to Greater London's boundary with Hertfordshire. The term ''nor ...

rivals Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur were both in the league title race this season and the League Cup semi-final paired them together, where the scores were equal over two legs before Arsenal won the replay. Liverpool, four time winners earlier in the decade, were held to a 0–0 draw at Southampton in the first leg of the other semi-final before triumphing 3–0 at Anfield.

First Leg

Second Leg

Replay

Final

Match details

References

General

* * * *

Specific

{{DEFAULTSORT:1986-87 Football League Cup EFL Cup seasons 1986–87 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 set ...

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, cl ...