Coventry City and Oxford United both appeared in the competition as a result of their membership of League One for the 2016–17 season. Coventry were making their first appearance in a League Trophy final while for Oxford it was their second, following a 3–2 defeat to Barnsley in the previous season's match. Both teams had won a major Wembley cup final during the 1980s – Oxford beat Queens Park Rangers in the 1986 Football League Cup Final, and Coventry won the following season's FA Cup Final against Tottenham Hotspur. The two sides had won one game each of the head-to-head league meetings that season. At Coventry's Ricoh Arena, in October 2016, Coventry won 2–1 with goals from Ben Stevenson and Marvin Sordell and a late consolation for Oxford by Dan Crowley. The return fixture at the Kassam Stadium a month later was won by Oxford with Kane Hemmings, Jamie Sterry, Chris Maguire and Alex MacDonald all scoring as the match finished 4–1.