Fantasy Premier League is played by over 10 million people globally. This guide covers everything you need to know: how scoring works, squad structure, budget strategy, chips, transfers, and the data concepts that separate the top 10% from the pack.
What is FPL?
Fantasy Premier League lets you pick a squad of 15 Premier League players within a £100m budget. Your players earn points based on real-life performance — goals, assists, clean sheets, minutes, and bonus points. You compete against friends in mini-leagues and the global leaderboard across a 38-gameweek season.
| Action | Points | Position |
|---|---|---|
| Playing 1-59 minutes | 1 | All |
| Playing 60+ minutes | 2 | All |
| Goal scored | 5/4/3 | GK-DEF / MID / FWD |
| Assist | 3 | All |
| Clean sheet | 4/4/1/0 | GK / DEF / MID / FWD |
| Keeper saves (per 3) | 1 | GK |
| Bonus points | 1-3 | All — BPS system |
| Yellow card | -1 | All |
| Red card | -3 | All |
| Goals conceded (per 2) | -1 | GK / DEF |
| Own goal | -2 | All |
Your 15-player squad consists of: 2 goalkeepers, 5 defenders, 5 midfielders, 3 forwards. You play 11 each week in any valid formation (must include 1 GK, 3-5 DEF, 2-5 MID, 1-3 FWD). Total budget: £100m.
Premium assets (£10m+)
Invest £30-40m in 2-3 premium players. Typically 2 midfielders and 1 forward from top attacking clubs. These are your captain candidates every week — the players you build your team around.
Budget enablers (£4-5m)
Cheap reliable starters who free up budget for your premiums. Look for defenders from strong defensive sides and forwards/midfielders who start consistently. Don\'t sacrifice starts for savings.
Differentials (under-owned picks)
2-3 low-ownership players (under 15%) with good underlying xG and fixtures. These are your green arrow movers — if they return while template players blank, you climb the rankings.
Bench (positions 12-15)
Minimum viable starters who you can play if an injury arises. Keep £1-2m in the bank for emergency transfers. Your bench doesn\'t score unless you activate Bench Boost or have a vice-captain on the bench.
Every FPL manager gets four chips per season. Used at the right time, they can catapult you up the rankings. Used at the wrong time, they are wasted entirely.
Wildcard (×2)
When: Use one before the first international break; save second for post-January
Replaces your entire squad for free — no points hit. Most powerful chip in the game.
Strategy tip: Don't panic-wildcard after a bad gameweek. Use it when you have a plan to build a squad with a 5+ GW green fixture window.
Triple Captain
When: A Double Gameweek for a premium captain option
Triples (not doubles) your captain's score for one gameweek.
Strategy tip: The TC is most powerful when used on a premium player in a DGW — they play twice, so you get 3× points from two matches. Only use on confirmed DGW players.
Bench Boost
When: A Double Gameweek when your full squad plays
Your bench players score points for one gameweek instead of being inactive.
Strategy tip: Only valuable when all 15 players have fixtures. Target a DGW where you have 11+ starters with games.
Free Hit
When: A Blank Gameweek with many teams missing fixtures
Temporary wildcard — make unlimited transfers for one GW, then your squad reverts next week.
Strategy tip: Save for a major BGW where many of your regular players have no fixture. Build a 11-man squad of players with games, don't worry about long-term quality.
Avoiding these mistakes puts you ahead of most casual FPL managers before you even start making data-driven decisions.
Too many players from one club
Fix: Cap at 3 players from any one club. One injury or benching wipes out your week if you over-concentrate.
Ignoring FDR (Fixture Difficulty Rating)
Fix: Check the next 5 GW fixture run before buying. A great player in 5 tough fixtures scores fewer points than an average player in 5 easy ones.
Captain based on recent form, not xG
Fix: A player who scored twice last week on 0.08 xG is overperforming. Captain the player with 0.3+ xG per 90 in a good fixture, not the player on a lucky streak.
Taking hits (4-point transfers) too often
Fix: Hits only pay off when you're replacing a player who would score 0 points with one who scores 8+. Most weeks, the free transfer is better.
Not planning transfers in advance
Fix: Good FPL managers plan 2-3 GWs ahead. Know which transfers you'll make next week so you're not panicking at the deadline.
Selling too early after a bad week
Fix: Check the xG before selling. A player on 0.35 xG/90 who blanked last week is still a good player — the underlying data says returns are coming.
Once you understand the basics, these three data concepts separate the top 5% of FPL managers from the rest. You don\'t need to become a data scientist — just understand what each metric tells you.
xG per 90
Expected Goals per 90 minutes
Find players generating chances but not yet scoring. They're due returns.
Learn more →xA per 90
Expected Assists per 90 minutes
Find midfielders creating chances whose assists haven't arrived yet.
Learn more →Ask KiqIQ AI for captain picks, transfer advice, and fixture analysis — free to start.
For informational and educational purposes only.
