The Premier League Cup is an Under-21 cup competition adopts the UEFA Champions League format to bring extra competitiveness to the Games Programme.
The competition sees 32 clubs split into eight groups of four teams. Clubs from Premier League 2 and from the Professional Development League will face each other home and away, with the top two going through to the knockout stages.
Indeed, Birmingham City and Ipswich Town are both Category 2 sides which compete in the Professional Development League, one tier below that of Palace and Middlesbrough.
They, along with the travel required for the away fixtures, will be a tough test for Darren Powell’s side, which narrowly missed out on the knock-out stage by two points last season.
Details of the fixtures are outlined below.
Middlesbrough U21s v Crystal Palace U21s
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Friday, 15th September 2023
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Bishop Auckland FC
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19:00 BST
Birmingham City U21s v Crystal Palace U21s
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Friday, 6th October 2023
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St Andrew’s Stadium
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19:00 GMT
Crystal Palace U21s v Ipswich Town U21s
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Friday, 10th November 2023
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VBS Community Stadium
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19:00 GMT
Crystal Palace U21s v Middlesbrough U21s
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Monday, 11th December 2023
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VBS Community Stadium
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19:00 GMT
Crystal Palace U21s v Birmingham City U21s
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Monday, 22nd January 2024
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VBS Community Stadium
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19:00 GMT
Ipswich Town U21s v Crystal Palace U21s
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Monday, 5th February 2024
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Needham Market FC
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19:00 GMT
Please note that all fixtures are subject to change. Details of ticket and stream information will be announced in due course.
The Premier League Cup isn’t the only competition that Palace U21s are competing in this season, they are also in a newly restructured Premier League 2 and they will also be travelling to face League One and League Two opposition in the EFL Trophy.
Watch the U21s' first fixture of the new campaign against Manchester United LIVE on Palace TV+ - click here for more information.