2026/27 Premier Sports Cup Fixtures Announced
The curtain has barely fallen on one Scottish season and already the next is taking shape. The SPFL has confirmed the full fixture list for the 2026/27 Premier Sports Cup group stage, with television picks locked in and storylines already writing themselves.
Five ties will be shown live on Premier Sports, but the drama stretches far beyond the cameras. Eight groups, 40 teams, 80 matches. And, as ever, a few heavyweights will be asked some awkward early-summer questions.
TV spotlight falls on Stirling and Goodwin’s United
The first live game comes from Forthbank on Saturday July 11, where Stirling Albion host Dundee United at 5.30pm. It’s a sharp introduction for new Binos boss Steven Whittaker, who walks straight into a shot at one of the tournament favourites and Jim Goodwin’s rebuilt United.
It’s the sort of tie that can set the tone for a summer. United will be expected to control Group B, but Stirling, Montrose, Arbroath and The Spartans ensure there’s no room for early complacency. United’s second TV outing comes a week later, on Saturday July 18, when they welcome Arbroath to Tannadice at 7.00pm, the second leg of a live double-header.
That same afternoon, at 5.00pm, the cameras will be at Pittodrie as Aberdeen open their Group A campaign at home to Queen’s Park. Six-time League Cup winners, a demanding home crowd, and a Queen’s Park side with ambition of their own – it’s a classic early test of sharpness and squad depth.
Aberdeen under the lights, St Mirren defend their crown
Aberdeen’s group takes on a different edge when they hit the road. On Wednesday July 22, Stephen Robinson’s side head to Palmerston to face Queen of the South at 7.45pm, live on Premier Sports. It will be a notable night for Queen of the South, now under new manager Nicky Clark, who gets the TV spotlight and a shot at one of the big guns in front of a home crowd.
The final live game of the group stage belongs to the holders. St Mirren, who lifted the Premier Sports Cup last season, begin their defence in Group C and close out the section at home to Dunfermline Athletic in Paisley on Sunday July 26, kick-off 3.00pm. Neil Lennon’s Dunfermline will arrive with intent, knowing that a result there could swing both the group and the race for one of the best runners-up spots.
Between those headline fixtures, the schedule is relentless. From July 11 to July 25, the groups will race through five matchdays, with Tuesday nights and Saturday afternoons packed with ties from Annan to Inverness, from Peterhead to Ayr.
Underdogs, new faces and long trips north
The format remains familiar, but there are fresh names and intriguing subplots everywhere.
Lowland League champions Linlithgow Rose step into Group F, where they face Greenock Morton, Inverness CT, East Fife and Premiership side St Johnstone. Their first assignment comes at Cappielow on Saturday July 11, followed by a glamour home tie against St Johnstone on Tuesday July 14. For Linlithgow, every point will feel like a statement.
Highland League winners Brora Rangers land in Group A alongside Aberdeen, Queen’s Park, Queen of the South and Kelty Hearts. They open at home to Aberdeen on Tuesday July 14, a 7.45pm kick-off that will drag a Premiership squad to the Highlands in the first week of competitive action. Brora’s presence, along with Highland League runners-up Brechin City in Group E, ensures the traditional cup jeopardy is alive and well.
Brechin, who join Partick Thistle, Livingston, Stenhousemuir and Forfar Athletic, start away to Partick Thistle at Firhill on July 11, then host Livingston three days later. For a club on the rise again, these nights matter.
Every corner of the country in play
Group by group, the geography of Scottish football is on full display.
Group D sends Ross County south to Annan on the opening day, while Dundee face a tricky opener against Airdrieonians. Group G pits Falkirk against Ayr United, Alloa Athletic, Stranraer and Edinburgh City, a section that looks as balanced as any. Group H brings together Peterhead, Hamilton Accies, Raith Rovers, Elgin City and Kilmarnock, with long journeys and tight turnarounds baked in.
Kick-offs are largely traditional 3.00pm on Saturdays and 7.45pm on Tuesdays, but the calendar comes with a caveat: several venues are undergoing major summer pitch works, so some fixtures may move. The SPFL has also confirmed that, as in the last two seasons, a number of additional ties will be streamed on the Premier Sports app, with details to follow.
Route to Hampden already mapped
The stakes are clear. Across the 80 group-stage games, the eight group winners and the three best runners-up will emerge to join Celtic, Heart of Midlothian, Rangers, Motherwell and Hibernian in the last 16 on August 15/16. Those five clubs go straight in as European representatives.
From there, the path tightens. Quarter-finals are set for the weekend of September 12/13, semi-finals for October 31 and November 1, and the 2026/27 Premier Sports Cup final will be played on Sunday December 13.
SPFL Chief Operating Officer Calum Beattie underlined the sense of continuity and momentum, noting that with an “unforgettable 2025/26 Scottish football season having just ended”, the league is ready to roll straight into the next chapter and thanked Premier Sports for their continued backing.
The calendar is fixed. The TV trucks know where they’re going. Now the question hangs over every camp from Forthbank to Fife: who will use this July sprint to launch a season, and who will be left chasing from behind before the league ball has even been kicked?
