by Staff Writer
Wednesday, 25th June 2025
West Ham United will be one of 16 Premier League clubs entering an Under 21 team in next season's Vertu Trophy.
The competition - previously known as the EFL Trophy but renamed due to a sponsorship deal - will include teams representing Arsenal, Aston Villa, Brighton & Hove Albion, Chelsea, Crystal Palace, Everton, Fulham, Leeds United, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Newcastle United, Nottingham Forest, Tottenham Hotspur and Wolverhampton Wanderers as well as West Ham.
The draw for the Group Stage of the 2025/26 competition will take place live on Sky Sports News tomorrow (2:30 pm on Thursday, 26 June). All 64 teams will enter from Round One and will be split into 16 regional groups of four, with eight groups comprising each of the northern and southern regions.
The draw for the groups has already taken place bar the top flight clubs, who will be added in Thursday's draw. They are as follows:
Group A
Cardiff City
Exeter City
Newport County
Group B
Bristol Rovers
Cheltenham Town
Plymouth Argyle
Group C
Northampton Town
Shrewsbury Town
Walsall
Group D
Milton Keynes Dons
Reading
Swindon Town
Group E
AFC Wimbledon
Bromley
Stevenage
Group F
Crawley Town
Leyton Orient
Peterborough United
Group G
Colchester United
Gillingham
Wycombe Wanderers
Group H
Barnet
Cambridge United
Luton Town
And the ball numbers of the eight Premier League teams entering the southern section - one to be added to each of the above groups - are as follows:
1. Arsenal U21
2. Aston Villa U21
3. Brighton & Hove Albion U21
4. Chelsea U21
5. Crystal Palace U21
6. Fulham U21
7. Tottenham Hotspur U21
8. West Ham United U21
The matches will take place from the beginning of September (dates to be confirmed). Every match is scheduled to be broadcast live on TV.
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