Hearts and Hibs wait to discover 2025/26 Premier Sports Cup fate

The SPFL have confirmed the initial details for the 2025/26 Premier Sports Cup and set out the path Hearts and Hibs must navigate as they look to land major silverware in the first half of the new season.

As it stands, Hearts will enter next season’s competition in the group stages and that means their competitive fixtures will get off to an earlier than expected start. For Hibs, their immediate focus is on trying to secure a place in European competition next season and David Gray’s side head into Saturday’s home game with Dundee United sat in the driving seat to land third place in the Premiership table before the season comes to a close later this month.

Should Hibs land a spot in either the Europa League or Europa Conference League, their involvement in next season’s Premier Sports Cup will not commence until the first knockout round.

But what do we know about next season’s Premier Sports Cup and when will the group stage and knockout stage fixtures take place?

When will the draw for the group stage of the 2025/26 Premier Sports Cup take place and will it be broadcast live?

We now know the draw for the group stage of next season’s Premier Sports Cup will be held on Wednesday, May 28 at 1pm and there has been confirmation the draw will be broadcast live by Premier Sports and the SPFL, who have revealed further details ‘will be published in due course’.

What are the dates for the group stage fixtures in the 2025/26 Premier Sports Cup?

A pre-season training camp will take place early this year, with the Premier Sports League Cup group stage due to start on the weekend of 12/13 July. The new Hearts manager will therefore have little time to bed himself in before his team needs to be fit, ready and willing for competitive action. | SNS Group

The SPFL have confirmed the first group stage fixtures will take place on the weekend of the 12th and 13th of July, with the next four matchdays scheduled across the following two midweeks and weekends. That means the final group stage games will take place on the final weekend of July.

What are the dates for the knockout rounds of the 2025/26 Premier Sports Cup?

Once the group stage is completed, Hibs, should they qualify for Europe this season as expected, will enter the competition in the second round and that has been scheduled for the weekend of 16th and 17th August. The quarter-finals will take place on the 20th or 21st of September with the semi-finals pencilled in for the first weekend of November. As always, Hampden Park will host the final and that will take place on Sunday, December 14.

How did Hearts and Hibs fare in the 2024/25 Premier Sports Cup?

BRANDYWELL-BOUND? . . . Hearts striker Liam Boyce holds off Falkirk's Dylan Tait.

Hibs came through the group stage with nine points from four games to top the Group C table ahead of Queens Park, Peterhead, Kelty Hearts and Elgin City. However, their involvement came to an end in the second round as they suffered a 3-1 defeat at eventual winners Celtic. Hearts were granted entry directly into the second round after qualifying for Europe - but they fell at the first hurdle with a 2-0 loss at Falkirk.

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