London, Dec 22 (IANS): This season's Carabao Cup final has been rescheduled and will now take place on April 25 next year because of the Covid-19 pandemic, the English Football League (EFL) has announced.

"It is the objective of the league to stage the final with as many supporters in attendance as possible and the decision has therefore been taken to move the final from its original date of Sunday 28 February 2021 to later in the year," EFL said in a statement.

"The number of fans permitted will be dependent on government guidance in place at the time and it is hoped that moving the date to later in the year will give clubs and their fans the best opportunity to attend in person," it added.

Supporters have not been able to attend matches in full capacity since March following the coronavirus outbreak, and recently large parts of UK returned to tiers which ban all fans from attending sporting events.

The competition is set to continue this week, with the quarter-finals to be played across December 22 and 23.