Scottish League Cup: Dundee face Ross County in only top-flight group meeting
- Published
St Johnstone defeated Livingston to win last season's League Cup
Newly promoted Dundee have been drawn with Ross County in the only Scottish League Cup section involving two Premiership sides.
Eight groups of five teams will compete to qualify for the knock-out stage, at which point they will be joined by five clubs involved in European competition.
League Cup holders St Johnstone are among the sides receiving a bye.
Beaten finalists Livingston are in a group that includes Raith Rovers, who were third in the Championship.
Brechin City, who have dropped out of the top leagues for the first time in 67 years after losing their play-off to Kelty Hearts, are also in that section.
Lowland League champions Kelty, who will be playing in League 2 for the first time, have Premiership side Dundee United as top seeds in their section.
Championship winners Heart of Midlothian are in the same group as Inverness Caledonian Thistle, who narrowly missed out on the promotion play-offs.
Relegated Hamilton Academical and Kilmarnock, who drop out of the top flight for the first time in 28 years, have fellow second-tier sides Ayr United and Greenock Morton respectively in their groups.
Top-flight Motherwell face a Lanarkshire derby with League 1 side Airdrieonians in a section that also includes a Dumfries & Galloway meeting between Championship side Queen of the South and League 2 outfit Annan Athletic.
With Scotland having an extra team involved in European competition next season, Lowland League side East Kilbride were added to the group stage to even out the numbers and are in section that has Kilmarnock as top seeds.
Eight group winners and three best runners-up will join Rangers, Celtic, Hibernian, Aberdeen and St Johnstone in the last 16.
The opening group fixtures of the competition, which will now be sponsored by Premier Sports instead of Betfred, will be played on the weekend 10/11 July, with the final schedule for 19 December.
Scottish League Cup, group stage
North section
Group A: Heart of Midlothian, Inverness Caledonian Thistle, Peterhead, Cove Rangers, Stirling Albion.
Group B: Dundee United, Arbroath, East Fife, Elgin City, Kelty Hearts.
Group C: Ross County, Dundee, Forfar Athletic, Montrose, Brora Rangers.
Group D: Livingston, Raith Rovers, Alloa Athletic, Cowdenbeath, Brechin City.
South section
Group E: Hamilton Academical, Ayr United, Falkirk, Albion Rovers, Edinburgh City.
Group F: Motherwell, Queen of the South, Airdrieonians, Queen's Park, Annan Athletic.
Group G: Kilmarnock, Greenock Morton, Clyde, Stranraer, East Kilbride.
Group H: St Mirren, Dunfermline Athletic, Partick Thistle, Dumbarton, Stenhousemuir.