2023–24 Scottish League Cup

The 2023–24 Scottish League Cup, also known as the Viaplay Cup for sponsorship reasons, was the 78th season of Scotland's second-most prestigious football knockout competition.

2023–24 Scottish League Cup

Tournament details
Country	Scotland
Dates	15 July – 17 December 2023
Teams	45
Defending champions	Celtic
Final positions
Champions	Rangers (28th title)
Runner-up	Aberdeen
Tournament statistics
Matches played	95
Goals scored	287 (3.02 per match)
Attendance	359,464 (3,784 per match)
Top goal scorer(s)	Simon Murray (7 goals)
← 2022–23 2024–25 →

Celtic were the two-time defending champions, but were eliminated in the second round by Kilmarnock.

Rangers won their 28th Scottish League Cup beating Aberdeen 1–0 in the final.

Schedule

Round	First match date	Fixtures	Clubs
Group stage	15 July 2023[1]	80	45 → 16
Second round	19 August 2023[1]	8	16 → 80
Quarter finals	26 September 2023[1]	4	8 → 4
Semi finals	4 November 2023[1]	2	4 → 2
Final	17 December 2023[1]	1	2 → 1

Format

The competition began with eight groups of five teams.^[2] The five clubs initially competing in the UEFA Champions League (Celtic and Rangers), Europa League (Aberdeen) and Europa Conference League (Heart of Midlothian and Hibernian) received a bye to the second round. The group stage consisted of 40 teams: all remaining teams that competed across the SPFL in 2022–23, the 2022–23 Highland Football League champions (Brechin City) and 2022–23 Lowland Football League champions (The Spartans). Unlike previous seasons where the remaining group stage spot was given to the runners-up of the Highland League or Lowland League, Cowdenbeath – who finished 15th in the Lowland League, having been relegated from Scottish League Two in 2022 – accepted an invitation to participate.^[2]

The winners of each of the eight groups, as well as the three best runners-up, progressed to the second round (last 16). At this stage, the competition reverted to the traditional knock-out format. The three group winners with the highest points total and the European entrants were seeded.

Bonus point system

The traditional point system of awarding three points for a win and one point for a draw was used. In addition, for each group stage match that finished in a draw, a penalty shoot-out took place, with the winner being awarded a bonus point.^[3]

Group stage

Main article: 2023–24 Scottish League Cup group stage

The teams were seeded according to their final league positions in 2022–23 and drawn into eight groups, with each group comprising one team from each pot. The draw for the group stage took place on 8 June 2023 and was broadcast live on Viaplay & the SPFL YouTube channel.^[2]

Group A

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	PW	PL	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification		AYR	STI	STJ	STE	ALL
1	Ayr United	4	3	1	0	0	10	2	+8	11	Qualification for the second round		—	—	—	1–0	6–0
2	Stirling Albion	4	3	0	1	0	9	3	+6	10			1–1p	—	—	2–1	—
3	St Johnstone	4	1	0	0	3	5	7	−2	3			1–2	0–4	—	—	—
4	Stenhousemuir	4	1	0	0	3	3	6	−3	3			—	—	1–0	—	1–3
5	Alloa Athletic	4	1	0	0	3	4	13	−9	3			—	1–2	0–4	—	—

Source: ^[4]
Rules for classification: 1) goal difference, 2) goals scored, 3) away goals scored, 4) matches won, 5) away matches won, 6) drawing of lots.^[5]

Group B

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	PW	PL	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification		PAR	FAL	DUN	SPA	PET
1	Partick Thistle	4	2	1	1	0	7	5	+2	9	Qualification for the second round		—	2–2p	—	2–1	—
2	Falkirk	4	2	1	0	1	8	5	+3	8			—	—	0–1	—	4–1
3	Dundee United	4	2	0	0	2	5	3	+2	6			1–2	—	—	—	3–0
4	The Spartans	4	2	0	0	2	5	5	0	6			—	1–2	1–0	—	—
5	Peterhead	4	0	0	1	3	3	10	−7	1			1–1p	—	—	1–2	—

Source: ^[6]
Rules for classification: 1) goal difference, 2) goals scored, 3) away goals scored, 4) matches won, 5) away matches won, 6) drawing of lots.^[5]

Group C

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	PW	PL	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification		LIV	HAM	COV	BRE	CLY
1	Livingston	4	3	0	1	0	10	1	+9	10	Qualification for the second round		—	1–1p	—	—	1–0
2	Hamilton Academical	4	2	1	1	0	7	4	+3	9			—	—	2–2p	1–0	—
3	Cove Rangers	4	2	1	0	1	10	11	−1	8			0–5	—	—	—	5–2
4	Brechin City	4	1	0	0	3	4	8	−4	3			0–3	—	2–3	—	—
5	Clyde	4	0	0	0	4	4	11	−7	0			—	1–3	—	1–2	—

Source: ^[7]
Rules for classification: 1) goal difference, 2) goals scored, 3) away goals scored, 4) matches won, 5) away matches won, 6) drawing of lots.^[5]

Group D

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	PW	PL	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification		ROS	GMO	KEL	STR	EDI
1	Ross County	4	3	0	1	0	13	6	+7	10	Qualification for the second round		—	2–1	3–3p	—	—
2	Greenock Morton	4	3	0	0	1	11	4	+7	9			—	—	—	3–0	4–1
3	Kelty Hearts	4	2	1	0	1	11	9	+2	8			—	1–3	—	2–0	—
4	Stranraer	4	1	0	0	3	3	11	−8	3			1–5	—	—	—	2–1
5	Edinburgh City	4	0	0	0	4	6	14	−8	0			1–3	—	3–5	—	—

Source: ^[8]
Rules for classification: 1) goal difference, 2) goals scored, 3) away goals scored, 4) matches won, 5) away matches won, 6) drawing of lots.^[5]

Group E

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	PW	PL	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification		AIR	DND	DUM	ICT	BON
1	Airdrieonians	4	4	0	0	0	7	2	+5	12	Qualification for the second round		—	1–0	2–0	—	—
2	Dundee	4	3	0	0	1	5	2	+3	9			—	—	3–1	1–0	—
3	Dumbarton	4	1	1	0	2	3	6	−3	5			—	—	—	2–1	p0–0
4	Inverness Caledonian Thistle	4	1	0	0	3	5	7	−2	3			2–3	—	—	—	2–1
5	Bonnyrigg Rose	4	0	0	1	3	1	4	−3	1			0–1	0–1	—	—	—

Source: ^[9]
Rules for classification: 1) goal difference, 2) goals scored, 3) away goals scored, 4) matches won, 5) away matches won, 6) drawing of lots.^[5]

Group F

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	PW	PL	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification		KIL	RAI	DNF	ALB	ANN
1	Kilmarnock	4	3	0	1	0	9	3	+6	10	Qualification for the second round		—	2–2p	—	—	3–0
2	Raith Rovers	4	2	1	1	0	8	5	+3	9			—	—	1–1p	2–0	—
3	Dunfermline Athletic	4	2	1	0	1	8	3	+5	8			0–2	—	—	—	4–0
4	Albion Rovers	4	1	0	0	3	3	8	−5	3			1–2	—	0–3	—	—
5	Annan Athletic	4	0	0	0	4	3	12	−9	0			—	2–3	—	1–2	—

Source: ^[10]
Rules for classification: 1) goal difference, 2) goals scored, 3) away goals scored, 4) matches won, 5) away matches won, 6) drawing of lots.^[5]

Group G

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	PW	PL	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification		MOT	QOS	EFI	QPA	ELG
1	Motherwell	4	3	1	0	0	9	3	+6	11	Qualification for the second round		—	—	3–0	1–0	—
2	Queen of the South	4	2	0	2	0	7	4	+3	8			3–3p	—	0–0p	—	—
3	East Fife	4	1	2	0	1	3	4	−1	7			—	—	—	p0–0	3–1
4	Queen's Park	4	1	0	1	2	6	3	+3	4			—	1–2	—	—	5–0
5	Elgin City	4	0	0	0	4	1	12	−11	0			0–2	0–2	—	—	—

Source: ^[11]
Rules for classification: 1) goal difference, 2) goals scored, 3) away goals scored, 4) matches won, 5) away matches won, 6) drawing of lots.^[5]

Group H

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	PW	PL	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification		STM	FOR	ARB	MON	COW
1	St Mirren	4	3	0	0	1	9	1	+8	9	Qualification for the second round		—	4–0	4–0	—	—
2	Forfar Athletic	4	3	0	0	1	6	6	0	9			—	—	3–1	—	1–0
3	Arbroath	4	1	1	0	2	5	8	−3	5			—	—	—	3–0	p1–1
4	Montrose	4	1	1	0	2	3	6	−3	5			1–0	1–2	—	—	—
5	Cowdenbeath	4	0	0	2	2	2	4	−2	2			0–1	—	—	1–1p	—

Source: ^[12]
Rules for classification: 1) goal difference, 2) goals scored, 3) away goals scored, 4) matches won, 5) away matches won, 6) drawing of lots.^[5]

Best runners-up

Pos	Grp	Team v t e	Pld	W	PW	PL	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	A	Stirling Albion	4	3	0	1	0	9	3	+6	10	Qualification for the second round
2	D	Greenock Morton	4	3	0	0	1	11	4	+7	9
3	F	Raith Rovers	4	2	1	1	0	8	5	+3	9
4	C	Hamilton Academical	4	2	1	1	0	7	4	+3	9
5	E	Dundee	4	3	0	0	1	5	2	+3	9
6	H	Forfar Athletic	4	3	0	0	1	6	6	0	9
7	B	Falkirk	4	2	1	0	1	8	5	+3	8
8	G	Queen of the South	4	2	0	2	0	7	4	+3	8

Source: ^[13]
Rules for classification: 1) goal difference, 2) goals scored, 3) away goals scored, 4) matches won, 5) away matches won, 6) drawing of lots.^[5]

Knockout phase

Second round

Draw and seeding

Celtic, Rangers, Aberdeen, Heart of Midlothian and Hibernian entered the competition at this stage, due to their participation in UEFA club competitions. They joined the three group winners with the best records as the eight seeded sides. The other five group winners and the three best runners up were the unseeded sides.^[2]

Teams in bold advanced to the quarter-finals.

Seeded	Unseeded
Aberdeen Airdrieonians Ayr United Celtic Heart of Midlothian Hibernian Motherwell Rangers	Greenock Morton Kilmarnock Livingston Partick Thistle Raith Rovers Ross County Stirling Albion St Mirren

Matches

Stirling Albion v Aberdeen

18 August 2023	Stirling Albion	1–2	Aberdeen	Stirling
19:45	Spence 75'	[14]	Miovski 29' Clarkson 63'	Stadium: Forthbank Stadium Attendance: 2,943 Referee: David Munro

Rangers v Greenock Morton

19 August 2023	Rangers	2–1	Greenock Morton	Glasgow
12:30	Dessers 60' (pen.) Danilo 68'	[15]	Gillespie 53' (pen.)	Stadium: Ibrox Stadium Attendance: 38,943 Referee: David Dickinson

Airdrieonians v Ross County

19 August 2023	Airdrieonians	3–4 (a.e.t.)	Ross County	Airdrie
15:00	Gallagher 36', 82' (pen.) O'Connor 89'	[16]	Turner 6' White 7' Murray 38' Brophy 101'	Stadium: Excelsior Stadium Attendance: 1,631 Referee: Steven McLean

Livingston v Ayr United

19 August 2023	Livingston	2–0	Ayr United	Livingston
15:00	Nouble 12' Montaño 64'	[17]		Stadium: Almondvale Stadium Attendance: 1,304 Referee: Kevin Clancy

St Mirren v Motherwell

19 August 2023	St Mirren	1–0	Motherwell	Paisley
15:00	Boyd-Munce 9'	[18]		Stadium: St Mirren Park Attendance: 5,241 Referee: Willie Collum

Hibernian v Raith Rovers

20 August 2023	Hibernian	2–1	Raith Rovers	Edinburgh
14:00	Youan 56' Vente 69'	[19]	Smith 67'	Stadium: Easter Road Attendance: 8,674 Referee: Nick Walsh

Heart of Midlothian v Partick Thistle

20 August 2023	Heart of Midlothian	4–0	Partick Thistle	Edinburgh
14:00	Graham 10' (o.g.) Offiah 45' Shankland 50' Tagawa 75'	[20]		Stadium: Tynecastle Park Attendance: 12,841 Referee: John Beaton

Kilmarnock v Celtic

20 August 2023	Kilmarnock	1–0	Celtic	Kilmarnock
15:00	Watkins 59'	[21]		Stadium: Rugby Park Attendance: 8,002 Referee: Alan Muir

Quarter-finals

Rangers vs Livingston at Ibrox Stadium, 27 September 2023

The draw took place on Sunday 20 August 2023 following the Kilmarnock v Celtic match live on Viaplay Sports 1.^[22]

Teams in bold advanced to the semi-finals.

Premiership
Aberdeen Heart of Midlothian Hibernian Kilmarnock Livingston Rangers Ross County St Mirren

Kilmarnock v Heart of Midlothian

26 September 2023	Kilmarnock	1–2	Heart of Midlothian	Kilmarnock
19:45	Lyons 68'	[23]	Grant 40' Lowry 90'	Stadium: Rugby Park Attendance: 6,014 Referee: Steven McLean

Hibernian v St Mirren

27 September 2023	Hibernian	4–2	St Mirren	Edinburgh
19:45	Youan 52' Vente 54' Boyle 80', 90'	[24]	Tanser 43' Baccus 76'	Stadium: Easter Road Attendance: 9,982 Referee: David Munro

Ross County v Aberdeen

27 September 2023	Ross County	1–2	Aberdeen	Dingwall
19:45	Turner 83' (pen.)	[25]	Shinnie 8' Sokler 80'	Stadium: Victoria Park Attendance: 4,637 Referee: John Beaton

Rangers v Livingston

27 September 2023	Rangers	4–0	Livingston	Glasgow
20:00	Sima 10' Yılmaz 66' de Lucas 84' (o.g.) Jack 90'	[26]		Stadium: Ibrox Stadium Attendance: 35,420 Referee: Willie Collum

Semi-finals

The draw took place on Wednesday 27 September 2023 following the Rangers v Livingston match live on Viaplay Sports 1.^[27]

Teams in bold advanced to the final.

Premiership
Aberdeen Heart of Midlothian Hibernian Rangers

Hibernian v Aberdeen

4 November 2023	Hibernian	0–1	Aberdeen	Glasgow
17:15		[28]	Miovski 78'	Stadium: Hampden Park Attendance: 28,295 Referee: John Beaton

Heart of Midlothian v Rangers

5 November 2023	Heart of Midlothian	1–3	Rangers	Glasgow
15:00	Shankland 81' (pen.)	[29]	Tavernier 50' (pen.), 64' Wright 55'	Stadium: Hampden Park Attendance: 44,734 Referee: Nick Walsh

Final

Main article: 2023 Scottish League Cup final (December)

Rangers v Aberdeen

17 December 2023	Rangers	1–0	Aberdeen	Glasgow
15:00	Tavernier 76'			Stadium: Hampden Park Attendance: 49,296 Referee: Don Robertson

Media coverage

The domestic broadcasting rights for the competition are held exclusively by Viaplay Sports, who will broadcast between 12 and 16 live matches per season, as well as highlights.^[30]

The following matches were broadcast live on UK television:

Round	Date	Match
Group stage	15 July 2023	Raith Rovers v Dunfermline Athletic[31]
	18 July 2023	Dundee United v Partick Thistle[31]
	22 July 2023	Motherwell v Queen's Park[31]
	25 July 2023	Falkirk v Dundee United[31]
	30 July 2023	Dundee v Inverness Caledonian Thistle[31]
Second round	19 August 2023	Rangers v Greenock Morton[32]
	20 August 2023	Kilmarnock v Celtic[32]
Quarter-Finals	26 September 2023	Kilmarnock v Heart of Midlothian[33]
	27 September 2023	Rangers v Livingston[33]
Semi-Finals	4 November 2023	Hibernian v Aberdeen[34]
	5 November 2023	Heart of Midlothian v Rangers[34]
Final	17 December 2023	Rangers v Aberdeen[35]

References

1. "Date set for Viaplay Cup draw". SPFL. 16 May 2023. Retrieved 7 June 2023.
2. "2023/24 Viaplay Cup draw seedings". SPFL. 7 June 2023. Retrieved 7 June 2023.
3. "New League Cup format and TV deal". SPFL. 7 December 2015. Archived from the original on 22 March 2017. Retrieved 7 June 2023.
4. "Summary - League Cup Group A". Soccerway. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
5. "Format". SPFL. Retrieved 7 June 2023.
6. "Summary - League Cup Group B". Soccerway. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
7. "Summary - League Cup Group C". Soccerway. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
8. "Summary - League Cup Group D". Soccerway. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
9. "Summary - League Cup Group E". Soccerway. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
10. "Summary - League Cup Group F". Soccerway. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
11. "Summary - League Cup Group G". Soccerway. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
12. "Summary - League Cup Group H". Soccerway. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
13. "Summary - League Cup". Soccerway. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
14. "Stirling Albion vs. Aberdeen - 18 August 2023". Soccerway. 18 August 2023. Retrieved 18 August 2023.
15. "Rangers vs. Greenock Morton - 19 August 2023". Soccerway. 19 August 2023. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
16. "Airdrieonians vs. Ross County - 19 August 2023". Soccerway. 19 August 2023. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
17. "Livingston vs. Ayr United - 19 August 2023". Soccerway. 19 August 2023. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
18. "St Mirren vs. Motherwell - 19 August 2023". Soccerway. 19 August 2023. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
19. "Hibernian vs. Raith Rovers - 20 August 2023". Soccerway. 20 August 2023. Retrieved 20 August 2023.
20. "Heart of Midlothian vs. Partick Thistle - 20 August 2023". Soccerway. 20 August 2023. Retrieved 20 August 2023.
21. "Kilmarnock vs. Celtic - 20 August 2023". Soccerway. 20 August 2023. Retrieved 20 August 2023.
22. "Viaplay Cup draw on Sunday". SPFL. 20 August 2023. Retrieved 20 August 2023.
23. "Kilmarnock vs. Hearts - 26 September 2023". Soccerway. 26 September 2023. Retrieved 26 September 2023.
24. "Hibernian vs. St. Mirren - 27 September 2023". Soccerway. 27 September 2023. Retrieved 27 September 2023.
25. "Ross County vs. Aberdeen - 27 September 2023". Soccerway. 27 September 2023. Retrieved 27 September 2023.
26. "Rangers vs. Livingston - 27 September 2023". Soccerway. 27 September 2023. Retrieved 27 September 2023.
27. "Viaplay Cup semi-final draw". SPFL. 27 September 2023. Retrieved 27 September 2023.
28. "Hibernian vs. Aberdeen - 4 November 2023". Soccerway. 4 November 2023. Retrieved 4 November 2023.
29. "Hearts vs. Rangers - 5 November 2023". Soccerway. 5 November 2023. Retrieved 5 November 2023.
30. "Premier Sports to sponsor League Cup". SPFL. 27 April 2021. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
31. "Viaplay Cup group stage fixtures". SPFL. 9 June 2023. Retrieved 9 June 2023.
32. "Viaplay Cup R2 fixture details". SPFL. 31 July 2023. Retrieved 31 July 2023.
33. "Viaplay Cup quarter-final update". SPFL. 21 August 2023. Retrieved 21 August 2023.
34. "Viaplay Cup semi-final details". SPFL. 28 September 2023. Retrieved 28 September 2023.
35. "Viaplay Cup Final 2023/24". SPFL. 6 November 2023. Retrieved 6 November 2023.