The 2018–19 Scottish League Cup group stage was played from 14–28 July 2018. A total of 40 teams competed in the group stage. The winners of each of the eight groups, as well as the four best runners-up progressed to the second round (last 16) of the 2018–19 Scottish League Cup.
Format The group stage consisted of eight groups of five teams. The four clubs competing in the Champions League (Celtic) and Europa League (Aberdeen, Hibernian and Rangers) qualifying rounds were given a bye through to the second round. The 40 teams competing in the group stage consisted of the other eight teams that competed in the 2017–18 Scottish Premiership, and all of the teams that competed in the 2017–18 Scottish Championship, 2017–18 Scottish League One and 2017–18 Scottish League Two, as well as the 2017–18 Highland Football League and the 2017–18 Lowland Football League champions. The teams were divided into two sections – North and South – with each section containing four top seeds, four second seeds and twelve unseeded teams. Each section was then drawn into four groups with each comprising one top seed, one second seed and three unseeded teams. The winners of each of the eight groups, as well as the four best runners-up progressed to the second round (last 16), which included the four UEFA qualifying clubs. At this stage, the competition reverted to the traditional knock-out format. The four group winners with the highest points total and the clubs entering at this stage were seeded, with the four group winners with the lowest points unseeded along with the four best runners-up.
The draw for the group stages took place on 25 May 2018 and was broadcast live on BT Sport 2. Seedings for the draw were confirmed two days in advance.
Teams
North
Seeding Teams in Bold qualified for the second round Top seedsSecond seedsUnseeded01. Heart of Midlothian 02. St Johnstone 03. Dundee 04. Ross County09. Dundee United 10. Dunfermline Athletic 11. Inverness CT 12. Falkirk17. Brechin City 18. Raith Rovers 19. Alloa Athletic 20. Arbroath 21. East Fife 22. Forfar Athletic
23. Montrose 24. Peterhead 25. Stirling Albion 26. Elgin City 27. Cowdenbeath 28. Cove Rangers
South
Seeding Teams in Bold qualified for the second round Top seedsSecond seedsUnseeded05. Kilmarnock 06. Motherwell 07. Hamilton Academical 08. Partick Thistle13. St Mirren 14. Livingston 15. Queen of the South 16. Greenock Morton29. Dumbarton 30. Ayr United 31. Stranraer 32. Airdrieonians 33. Queen's Park 34. Albion Rovers
35. Stenhousemuir 36. Clyde 37. Annan Athletic 38. Berwick Rangers 39. Edinburgh City 40. Spartans
North
Group A
Matches
Group B
Matches
Group C
Matches
Group D
Matches
South
Group E
Matches
Group F
Matches
Group G
Matches
Group H
Matches
Best runners-up
Qualified teams TeamQualified asQualified onNotesRoss CountyGroup A WinnerSt JohnstoneGroup B WinnerSeeded in Round 2 drawHeart of MidlothianGroup C WinnerDunfermline AthleticGroup D WinnerSeeded in Round 2 drawAyr UnitedGroup E WinnerSeeded in Round 2 drawLivingstonGroup F WinnerSeeded in Round 2 drawMotherwellGroup G WinnerKilmarnockGroup H WinnerQueen of the SouthBest 4 Runners UpDundeeBest 4 Runners UpSt MirrenBest 4 Runners UpPartick ThistleBest 4 Runners Up
Top goalscorers
RankPlayerClubGoals1 Lawrence ShanklandAyr United7 Stephen DobbieQueen of the South3 Jordyn SheerinCowdenbeath4 Myles HippolyteDunfermline Athletic Kris BoydKilmarnock615 players3
References
External links Scottish Professional Football League – League Cup official website