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A new group stage format for the Mitre Brooks Mileson Memorial League Cup will be introduced next season.
The new format means that there will be eight groups of five teams each, with the top two from each group progressing to the last 16.
Each club will play two home matches and two away matches.
The group stage will replace the first two rounds of the current knock-out format
Each team will be seeded according to where they finished in the league table this season, so, for example, the teams that finished second to ninth would be the top seeds for each of the eight groups.
The last 16 round and subsequent rounds will be straight knock-out ties played over one leg.
League chairman Glenn Youngman said:
“We believe the new format will raise interest in the competition and help bolster the number of matches for more of our clubs.
“With the reorganisation of our league, the number of games for clubs has significantly reduced. That has meant less revenue and fewer midweek fixtures, with some clubs finishing their fixtures by early April.
“Further work will be carried out in the coming weeks on the exact detail for the rules of the competition – for example how ties at the group stage would be decided for who progresses.
“We hope clubs and fans will enjoy the new format which we will try for a season and review in a year’s time.”
The exact numbers for each group will be determined once the FA makes decisions about promotion and relegation in and out of the league.