# 1980–81 Football League Cup

The 1980–81 Football League Cup was the 21st season of the Football League Cup, a knockout competition for England's top 92 football clubs. The competition started on 8 August 1980 and ended with the final replay on 1 April 1981.
The final was contested by First Division team Liverpool and Second Division West Ham United at Wembley Stadium in London and the replay was played at Villa Park in Birmingham.

## First round
### First leg

| Home Team | Score | Away Team | Date |
| Aldershot | 2–0 | Wimbledon | 9 August 1980 |
| Blackburn Rovers | 0–0 | Huddersfield Town | 9 August 1980 |
| Bournemouth | 1–1 | Swindon Town | 9 August 1980 |
| Brentford | 3–1 | Charlton Athletic | 9 August 1980 |
| Bury | 2–2 | Halifax Town | 9 August 1980 |
| Carlisle United | 2–0 | Rochdale | 9 August 1980 |
| Chester | 1–1 | Stockport County | 9 August 1980 |
| Chesterfield | 1–0 | Darlington | 9 August 1980 |
| Colchester United | 0–2 | Gillingham | 9 August 1980 |
| Doncaster Rovers | 1–1 | Mansfield Town | 9 August 1980 |
| Exeter City | 1–1 | Bristol Rovers | 9 August 1980 |
| Grimsby Town | 1–0 | Notts County | 9 August 1980 |
| Hereford United | 1–0 | Newport County | 9 August 1980 |
| Lincoln City | 5–0 | Hull City | 8 August 1980 |
| Northampton Town | 0–2 | Reading | 9 August 1980 |
| Peterborough United | 3–2 | Fulham | 9 August 1980 |
| Plymouth Argyle | 0–1 | Portsmouth | 9 August 1980 |
| Port Vale | 2–3 | Tranmere Rovers | 9 August 1980 |
| Rotherham United | 1–3 | Bradford City | 9 August 1980 |
| Scunthorpe United | 0–1 | Barnsley | 9 August 1980 |
| Sheffield Wednesday | 2–0 | Sheffield United | 9 August 1980 |
| Southend United | 1–0 | Oxford United | 9 August 1980 |
| Torquay United | 0–0 | Cardiff City | 9 August 1980 |
| Walsall | 2–3 | Blackpool | 9 August 1980 |
| Watford | 2–1 | Millwall | 9 August 1980 |
| Wigan Athletic | 2–1 | Crewe Alexandra | 9 August 1980 |
| Wrexham | 1–3 | Burnley | 9 August 1980 |
| York City | 2–1 | Hartlepool United | 9 August 1980 |

### Second leg

| Home Team | Score | Away Team | Date | Agg |
| Barnsley | 2–1 | Scunthorpe United | 12 August 1980 | 3–1 |
| Blackpool | 3–1 | Walsall | 13 August 1980 | 6–3 |
| Bradford City | 0–0 | Rotherham United | 13 August 1980 | 3–1 |
| Bristol Rovers | 1–1 | Exeter City | 12 August 1980 | 2–2 |
| Burnley | 2–1 | Wrexham | 12 August 1980 | 5–2 |
| Cardiff City | 2–1 | Torquay United | 13 August 1980 | 2–1 |
| Charlton Athletic | 5–0 | Brentford | 12 August 1980 | 6–3 |
| Crewe Alexandra | 2–2 | Wigan Athletic | 13 August 1980 | 3–4 |
| Darlington | 1–2 | Chesterfield | 12 August 1980 | 1–3 |
| Fulham | 1–1 | Peterborough United | 12 August 1980 | 3–4 |
| Gillingham | 2–1 | Colchester United | 12 August 1980 | 4–1 |
| Halifax Town | 0–1 | Bury | 12 August 1980 | 2–3 |
| Hartlepool United | 0–0 | York City | 12 August 1980 | 1–2 |
| Huddersfield Town | 1–1 | Blackburn Rovers | 12 August 1980 | 1–1 |
| Hull City | 0–2 | Lincoln City | 12 August 1980 | 0–7 |
| Mansfield Town | 2–1 | Doncaster Rovers | 12 August 1980 | 3–2 |
| Millwall | 0–2 | Watford | 12 August 1980 | 1–4 |
| Newport County | 5–0 | Hereford United | 12 August 1980 | 5–1 |
| Notts County | 3–0 | Grimsby Town | 12 August 1980 | 3–1 |
| Oxford United | 2–0 | Southend United | 13 August 1980 | 2–1 |
| Portsmouth | 2–1 | Plymouth Argyle | 12 August 1980 | 3–1 |
| Reading | 2–3 | Northampton Town | 13 August 1980 | 4–3 |
| Rochdale | 1–1 | Carlisle United | 12 August 1980 | 1–3 |
| Sheffield United | 1–1 | Sheffield Wednesday | 12 August 1980 | 1–3 |
| Stockport County | 1–0 | Chester | 11 August 1980 | 2–1 |
| Swindon Town | 2–0 | Bournemouth | 12 August 1980 | 3–1 |
| Tranmere Rovers | 0–1 | Port Vale | 12 August 1980 | 3–3 |
| Wimbledon | 4–1 | Aldershot | 12 August 1980 | 4–3 |

## Second round
### First leg

| Home Team | Score | Away Team | Date |
| Aston Villa | 1–0 | Leeds United | 27 August 1980 |
| Birmingham City | 2–1 | Bristol City | 26 August 1980 |
| Blackburn Rovers | 0–0 | Gillingham | 27 August 1980 |
| Bolton Wanderers | 0–3 | Crystal Palace | 26 August 1980 |
| Bradford City | 1–0 | Liverpool | 27 August 1980 |
| Brighton & Hove Albion | 3–1 | Tranmere Rovers | 26 August 1980 |
| Burnley | 0–2 | West Ham United | 26 August 1980 |
| Cambridge United | 3–1 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 26 August 1980 |
| Cardiff City | 1–0 | Chelsea | 27 August 1980 |
| Carlisle United | 1–2 | Charlton Athletic | 26 August 1980 |
| Chesterfield | 3–1 | Oxford United | 26 August 1980 |
| Everton | 3–0 | Blackpool | 26 August 1980 |
| Leyton Orient | 0–1 | Tottenham Hotspur | 27 August 1980 |
| Lincoln City | 1–1 | Swindon Town | 27 August 1980 |
| Manchester United | 0–1 | Coventry City | 27 August 1980 |
| Mansfield Town | 0–0 | Barnsley | 26 August 1980 |
| Middlesbrough | 3–1 | Ipswich Town | 26 August 1980 |
| Newcastle United | 3–2 | Bury | 27 August 1980 |
| Newport County | 1–1 | Notts County | 26 August 1980 |
| Nottingham Forest | 3–0 | Peterborough United | 27 August 1980 |
| Oldham Athletic | 3–2 | Portsmouth | 26 August 1980 |
| Preston North End | 1–0 | Wigan Athletic | 26 August 1980 |
| Queens Park Rangers | 0–0 | Derby County | 26 August 1980 |
| Reading | 0–2 | Luton Town | 27 August 1980 |
| Shrewsbury Town | 1–1 | Norwich City | 26 August 1980 |
| Southampton | 4–0 | Watford | 26 August 1980 |
| Stockport County | 1–1 | Sunderland | 27 August 1980 |
| Stoke City | 1–1 | Manchester City | 27 August 1980 |
| Swansea City | 1–1 | Arsenal | 26 August 1980 |
| West Bromwich Albion | 1–0 | Leicester City | 26 August 1980 |
| Wimbledon | 2–1 | Sheffield Wednesday | 26 August 1980 |
| York City | 2–1 | Bristol Rovers | 27 August 1980 |

### Second leg

| Home Team | Score | Away Team | Date | Agg |
| Arsenal | 3–1 | Swansea City | 2 September 1980 | 4–2 |
| Barnsley | 4–2 | Mansfield Town | 2 September 1980 | 4–2 |
| Blackpool | 2–2 | Everton | 3 September 1980 | 2–5 |
| Bristol City | 0–0 | Birmingham City | 2 September 1980 | 1–2 |
| Bristol Rovers | 1–0 | York City | 3 September 1980 | 2–2 |
| Bury | 1–0 | Newcastle United | 2 September 1980 | 3–3 |
| Charlton Athletic | 2–1 | Carlisle United | 2 September 1980 | 4–2 |
| Chelsea | 1–1 | Cardiff City | 3 September 1980 | 1–2 |
| Coventry City | 1–0 | Manchester United | 2 September 1980 | 2–0 |
| Crystal Palace | 2–1 | Bolton Wanderers | 2 September 1980 | 5–1 |
| Derby County | 0–0 | Queens Park Rangers | 3 September 1980 | 0–0 |
| Gillingham | 1–2 | Blackburn Rovers | 2 September 1980 | 1–2 |
| Ipswich Town | 3–0 | Middlesbrough | 2 September 1980 | 4–3 |
| Leeds United | 1–3 | Aston Villa | 3 September 1980 | 1–4 |
| Leicester City | 0–1 | West Bromwich Albion | 3 September 1980 | 0–2 |
| Liverpool | 4–0 | Bradford City | 2 September 1980 | 4–1 |
| Luton Town | 1–1 | Reading | 2 September 1980 | 3–1 |
| Manchester City | 3–0 | Stoke City | 3 September 1980 | 4–1 |
| Norwich City | 2–0 | Shrewsbury Town | 3 September 1980 | 3–1 |
| Notts County | 2–0 | Newport County | 2 September 1980 | 3–1 |
| Oxford United | 3–0 | Chesterfield | 3 September 1980 | 4–3 |
| Peterborough United | 1–1 | Nottingham Forest | 3 September 1980 | 1–4 |
| Portsmouth | 1–0 | Oldham Athletic | 2 September 1980 | 3–3 |
| Sheffield Wednesday | 3–1 | Wimbledon | 2 September 1980 | 4–3 |
| Sunderland | 1–2 | Stockport County | 3 September 1980 | 2–3 |
| Swindon Town | 2–0 | Lincoln City | 2 September 1980 | 3–1 |
| Tottenham Hotspur | 3–1 | Leyton Orient | 3 September 1980 | 4–1 |
| Tranmere Rovers | 2–4 | Brighton & Hove Albion | 3 September 1980 | 3–7 |
| Watford | 7–1 | Southampton | 2 September 1980 | 7–5 |
| West Ham United | 4–0 | Burnley | 2 September 1980 | 6–0 |
| Wigan Athletic | 1–2 | Preston North End | 3 September 1980 | 1–3 |
| Wolverhampton Wanderers | 0–1 | Cambridge United | 2 September 1980 | 1–4 |

## Third round
### Ties

| Home Team | Score | Away Team | Date |
| Barnsley | 3–2 | Cardiff City | 23 September 1980 |
| Birmingham City | 1–0 | Blackburn Rovers | 23 September 1980 |
| Brighton & Hove Albion | 1–2 | Coventry City | 23 September 1980 |
| Bristol Rovers | 0–0 | Portsmouth | 23 September 1980 |
| Bury | 0–7 | Nottingham Forest | 23 September 1980 |
| Cambridge United | 2–1 | Aston Villa | 23 September 1980 |
| Charlton Athletic | 1–2 | West Ham United | 23 September 1980 |
| Everton | 1–2 | West Bromwich Albion | 24 September 1980 |
| Ipswich Town | 1–1 | Norwich City | 23 September 1980 |
| Liverpool | 5–0 | Swindon Town | 23 September 1980 |
| Luton Town | 1–2 | Manchester City | 23 September 1980 |
| Notts County | 4–1 | Queens Park Rangers | 23 September 1980 |
| Preston North End | 1–0 | Oxford United | 23 September 1980 |
| Sheffield Wednesday | 1–2 | Watford | 23 September 1980 |
| Stockport County | 1–3 | Arsenal | 22 September 1980 |
| Tottenham Hotspur | 0–0 | Crystal Palace | 24 September 1980 |

### Replays

| Home Team | Score | Away Team | Date |
| Crystal Palace | 1–3 | Tottenham Hotspur | 30 September 1980 |
| Norwich City | 1–3 | Ipswich Town | 8 October 1980 |
| Portsmouth | 2–0 | Bristol Rovers | 30 September 1980 |

## Fourth round
### Ties

| Home Team | Score | Away Team | Date |
| Birmingham City | 2–1 | Ipswich Town | 28 October 1980 |
| Coventry City | 1–1 | Cambridge United | 28 October 1980 |
| Liverpool | 4–1 | Portsmouth | 28 October 1980 |
| Manchester City | 5–1 | Notts County | 29 October 1980 |
| Tottenham Hotspur | 1–0 | Arsenal | 4 November 1980 |
| Watford | 4–1 | Nottingham Forest | 28 October 1980 |
| West Bromwich Albion | 0–0 | Preston North End | 29 October 1980 |
| West Ham United | 2–1 | Barnsley | 28 October 1980 |

### Replays

| Home Team | Score | Away Team | Date |
| Cambridge United | 0–1 | Coventry City | 4 November 1980 |
| Preston North End | 1–1 | West Bromwich Albion | 4 November 1980 |

### 2nd Replay

| Home Team | Score | Away Team | Date |
| West Bromwich Albion | 2–1 | Preston North End | 12 November 1980 |

## Fifth round
### Ties

| Home Team | Score | Away Team | Date |
| Liverpool | 3–1 | Birmingham City | 2 December 1980 |
| Manchester City | 2–1 | West Bromwich Albion | 3 December 1980 |
| Watford | 2–2 | Coventry City | 2 December 1980 |
| West Ham United | 1–0 | Tottenham Hotspur | 2 December 1980 |

### Replay

| Home Team | Score | Away Team | Date |
| Coventry City | 5–0 | Watford | 9 December 1980 |

## Semi-finals
### First leg

| Home Team | Score | Away Team | Date |
| Coventry City | 3–2 | West Ham United | 27 January 1981 |
| Manchester City | 0–1 | Liverpool | 14 January 1981 |

### Second leg

| Home Team | Score | Away Team | Date | Agg |
| Liverpool | 1–1 | Manchester City | 10 February 1981 | 2–1 |
| West Ham United | 2–0 | Coventry City | 10 February 1981 | 4–3 |