Ipswich Town are unlikely to have a team in the EFL Trophy next season. Stuart Watson looks at why.
What is the EFL Trophy?
It's had various sponsors over the years - Auto Windscreens, Johnstone's Paint and Papa John's to name just three - with the most recent being Vertu.
The competition is contested by all 48 teams in League One and League Two, plus 16 Category One academy Under-21 sides.
Clubs starts in 16 regional groups. The top two from each qualify for the knockout stages. Luton Town are the current holders after they beat Stockport County 3-1 at Wembley in April.
Ipswich's history in it
Town's first team played in the EFL Trophy during the club's four-year stay in League One.
They reached the third round in 2019/20, exiting 2-1 at Exeter (Lee Martin late winner). In 2020/21, they finished bottom of a group containing Arsenal U21s, Gillingham and Crawley.
In 2021/22, the Blues were knocked out in the second round by Arsenal U21s. And in 2022/23 they fell at the same hurdle, losing 2-0 at Peterborough.
It's a reminder of how quickly the club has risen!
Why Town's U21 side are unlikely to get an invite
You have to have a Category One status academy to be eligible for the competition and Ipswich achieved that in July 2025.
The 16 academy team invites then go out in order of place in the pyramid.
Those spots were taken by: Liverpool (1st), Arsenal (2nd), Man City (3rd), Chelsea (4th), Newcastle (5th), Aston Villa (6th), Nottingham Forest (7th), Brighton (8th), Fulham (11th), Crystal Palace (12th), Everton (13th), West Ham (14th), Man United (15th), Wolves (16th), Tottenham (17th) and Leeds (1st in Championship) for the season just gone.
Bournemouth (9th) and Brentford (10th) didn't get invites as neither had Cat One academies.
Two clubs - Wolves, plus Tottenham/West Ham - will drop out of the Premier League this season. So who will take their places in the EFL Trophy?
The answer is probably Sunderland and Brentford. The former missed out as a club promoted via the play-offs in 2025 but are now higher up the pecking order, while Brentford were awarded Cat One status last month.
That will see the Blues likely just miss out on an invite as Coventry City, the team that won the Championship title, have a Cat Two academy.
A European competition!
John McGreal's Under-21s finished fifth in their inaugural PL2 season, beating the likes of Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea along the way.
As a result, they will be invited to participate in next season's Premier League International Cup. It's a competition that sees 12 of England's leading academy sides battle with 12 invited European clubs - all on English soil.
Borussia Dortmund beat Real Madrid in this month's final at Adams Park, Wycombe. The likes of PSG, Juventus and Valencia also took part.
It's understood the Blues will take their place in this competition.
What about the National League Cup?
The controversial National League Cup, a competition between 16 fifth-tier sides and 16 Premier League 2 teams, was launched in 2024.
Several clubs, both in non-league and PL2, have have rejected invites though.
The likes of Arsenal, Man City, Villa, Chelsea, Palace and Tottenham didn't enter their U21s in it for the season just gone, with Championship clubs Blackburn, Leicester, Middlesbrough, Southampton and West Brom all participating.
Boreham Wood beat West Ham U21s in the final at their home ground.
It remains to be seen if Ipswich accept an invite to this one.
