1895 Cup structure confirmed

The draw for the preliminary rounds of this season’s 1895 Cup will be made on Thursday afternoon.

Rochdale Hornets will join the rest of the Betfred League 1 clubs in the opening round of the competition. The draw will take place at around 3pm.

Below, supporters can find a breakdown of the competition's structure.

Competition structure

First preliminary round – weekend of February 1/2

An open draw to determine six clubs from League One who will compete in this round.

Three ties will take place, with the remaining teams receiving a bye through to the second preliminary round.

Second preliminary round – weekend of February 15/16 

An open draw, with the three winners from the first preliminary round joining the remaining five League One clubs who had a bye in the previous round. Four ties to take place.

Round 1 - weekend of March 1/2

At this stage, the four remaining teams will be joined by all Betfred Championship teams (aside from Toulouse Olympique). 

An open draw will take place, with eight ties to be drawn. 

The competition will continue on the following dates:

• Quarter-finals: Weekend of April 5/6 
• Semi-finals: Weekend of May 17/18 
• Final: Saturday 7 June, Wembley Stadium