Fantasy Premier League tips: Your easy guide to winning against your friends in 2026/27
Fantasy Premier League (FPL) is one of the most exciting and competitive parts of the football season, so here’s a friendly guide to help you outplay your friends.
Every year, as the new Premier League season kicks off, millions of football fans around the world get ready to dive into the official fantasy game. Since it launched in 2002 with just over 76,000 managers, FPL has grown to more than 13 million players every season—and it keeps getting bigger!
With so many people playing, it’s becoming trickier to pick the right players and climb up the overall leaderboard—especially if you want to beat your mates in mini-leagues.
There are over 500 footballers registered in the Premier League each season, so how do you know which players will rack up points and which might waste your budget? Don’t worry—SPORTbible has put together the ultimate FPL guide packed with tips to show off your football smarts and leave your friends in the dust.
Why trust me? I finished in the top 0.02% of teams for the last two seasons (32nd in 2024/25 and 1,940th in 2025/26), and I’ll share the key rules and strategies I followed every week.
First, understanding the rules is super important because FPL can get a bit tricky. You start with a £100 million budget to build a squad of 15 players: 2 goalkeepers, 5 defenders, 5 midfielders, and 3 forwards. You’ll pick 11 players for your starting lineup each week, with 4 on the bench.
Some people grab cheap bench players to splurge on star starters, but your bench can be a lifesaver. If someone in your starting 11 doesn’t play in a match, the first benched player who did play automatically steps in.
Remember, you can’t have more than three players from any one Premier League club on your squad.
Each gameweek, you originally get one free transfer to swap players. If you don’t use it, it carries over so you can have up to five free transfers later. Extra transfers beyond that cost you 4 points each, so use them wisely!
Every week, you pick a captain whose points are doubled. You also select a vice-captain who gets double points if your captain doesn’t play.
FPL also offers special “chips” that shake up how your team works for a week or more. You get to use each chip twice per season—once in the first half and once in the second half of the season. The chips are:
– Wildcard: Make unlimited transfers with no points lost!
– Bench Boost: You get points from your bench players too.
– Free Hit: Unlimited transfers for just one gameweek; your team returns to normal next week.
– Triple Captain: Your captain’s points are tripled instead of doubled.
You can only use one chip per gameweek, so timing is key!
Player prices change throughout the season based on how well they play and how many managers buy or sell them. For example, Bruno Fernandes’s price shot up £1.9 million in 2025/26, while Phil Foden’s dropped by £1.5 million.
Now that you know the basics, how will you build a winning team?
Scoring points mainly comes from goals, but the points differ by player position. Goalkeepers and defenders get more points for goals than forwards or midfielders. Clean sheets (no goals conceded) are crucial for defenders and goalkeepers.
A new and important addition since 2025/26 is Defensive Contribution (DEFCON) points, which reward players for tackles, interceptions, blocks, clearances, and recoveries. Defensive midfielders and center-backs often earn these points, which can give you a big edge.
Here’s a quick rundown of how points work:
– Playing under 60 minutes: 1 point
– Playing 60+ minutes: 2 points
– Goals by goalkeepers: 10 points
– Goals by defenders: 6 points
– Goals by midfielders: 5 points
– Goals by forwards: 4 points
– Assists: 3 points
– Clean sheet (GK/defender): 4 points
– Clean sheet (midfielder): 1 point
– Every 3 shots saved by GK: 1 point
– Penalty saves: 5 points
– Defensive contributions (varies by position): 2 points
– Penalty misses: -2 points
– Bonus points (1–3) for top match performers
– Every 2 goals conceded by GK/defender: -1 point
– Yellow card: -1 point
– Red card: -3 points
– Own goal: -2 points
The biggest tip? Try to leave aside any personal bias about players or teams. For example, even if you’re a Liverpool fan, you shouldn’t ignore Manchester United’s Bruno Fernandes since he consistently racks up points.
Also, check out player ownership stats in the FPL app or website. Popular players usually deserve a spot, but don’t just follow the crowd blindly—high ownership players’ prices can drop quickly if they perform poorly.
Finally, always plan your transfers around fixture difficulty. Use the FPL Fixture Difficulty Ratings tool to see which teams have easier or harder matches coming up and bring in players when they face weaker opponents.
Good luck! Now go build your dream team and show your mates who’s boss!