How to play Fantasy Premier League — a beginner's guide for 2026/27

Fantasy Premier League is a free game in which you pick a fifteen-player squad of real Premier League footballers with a £100 million budget, start eleven of them each Gameweek, and score points based on how those players perform in actual matches. You captain one player for double points, get one free transfer a week, and can hold at most three players from any single club.

Fantasy Premier League is the Premier League's official fantasy game, it's free, and millions of people play it. The idea is simple: you pick a squad of real players, they score you points for what they do on the pitch, and you try to finish above your mates. Everything after that is detail — so here's the detail, without the jargon.

What is FPL, in one line?

You're given a budget, you buy fifteen real Premier League players, you pick eleven of them to start each week, and you score points based on how those players actually perform in real matches. That's the whole game. The skill is in the choosing.

How do you build your squad?

You get £100 million to sign fifteen players, split into fixed positions:

• 2 goalkeepers
• 5 defenders
• 5 midfielders
• 3 forwards

There's one more rule that shapes everything: you can pick at most three players from any single club. So you can't just load up on one strong team — you have to spread your money around.

Before the season's first deadline you can make unlimited changes to this squad for free, so there's no harm in tinkering until you're happy. If you'd like a step-by-step method for spending that £100m, read how to pick your first FPL squad.

How do you actually score points?

Each week ("Gameweek" in FPL-speak) you pick eleven starters from your fifteen. You need one goalkeeper, at least three defenders and at least one forward — beyond that, any shape you like.

Those eleven earn points for good things: minutes played, goals, assists, clean sheets for defenders and goalkeepers, saves, and — newer to the game — defensive work like tackles and interceptions. They lose points for the bad stuff: yellow and red cards, own goals, penalties missed. The four players you leave on your bench don't score (unless you use a certain chip — more on those below).

What's the captain, and why does everyone go on about it?

Every Gameweek you name one player your captain, and their points are doubled. Pick the right captain in a big week and it can make your whole Gameweek. You also set a vice-captain, who takes over the double if your captain doesn't play a single minute. Captaincy is one of the biggest swings in the game — we've written a whole guide on how captaincy works and how to choose yours.

How do transfers work?

After the season starts, you get one free transfer each week, and you can save them up to a maximum of five. Want to make more moves than you've got saved? You can — but each extra transfer costs you four points (a "hit"). Sometimes that's worth it, often it isn't. Our transfers guide breaks down when to take the hit.

What are chips?

Chips are one-off boosts you play in a single Gameweek for a bigger effect — a free squad overhaul, a triple-points captain, and so on. In 2026/27 you get two sets of them across the season, and the first set has to be used before the Gameweek 19 deadline. They're worth understanding properly, so we've given them their own guide.

When does 2026/27 start?

The season kicks off with the Gameweek 1 deadline on Friday 21 August 2026 at 18:30 UK time. Your team has to be finalised before then — after the deadline, that Gameweek is locked. A good habit for the whole season: get your team sorted well before the deadline, not in a panic five minutes before. The new season also brings a batch of rule tweaks — here's everything new in FPL for 2026/27.

The honest beginner's mindset

The players who do well at FPL aren't the ones who react to every result. They understand fixtures, they think about their captain, they make transfers on purpose rather than out of frustration, and — most importantly — they don't rip up their team after one bad week. FPL is a marathon. Calm beats frantic. It helps to recognise the common mistakes beginners make before you make them yourself.

For most people the season is really about one thing: finishing above the people they know. That's a different game from chasing overall rank, and it has its own strategy — how to win your mini-league covers when to copy your rivals and when to go against them.

Frequently asked questions

Is FPL free to play? Yes. The official game costs nothing to enter.

How much is my budget? £100 million to build your initial fifteen-player squad.

How many players can I have from one club? A maximum of three.

When is the 2026/27 Gameweek 1 deadline? Friday 21 August 2026 at 18:30 UK time.

How many free transfers do I get? One per Gameweek, bankable up to a maximum of five.

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That's the game. The hard part isn't the rules — it's the ninety small decisions a season that decide whether you finish top of your mini-league or bottom. That's the bit coachme helps with: we do the reading on fixtures, form and injuries, and hand you a clear captain, transfer and bench call before every deadline. You still make the call. Try it free.