FPL
FPL 2025/26: The New Rules
The Premier League is almost back, and so is the addictive chaos of Fantasy Premier League. Pre-season form has given us a taste of who might deliver big in GW1, but this year, even the most experienced managers need to do a little homework.
The 2025/26 season comes with a set of new rules that could seriously impact how we pick our squads, use our chips, and chase those all-important green arrows. Let’s break them down, and more importantly, figure out how you can use them to your advantage.
Defensive Contributions: Points for Getting Stuck In
For the first time, outfield players can score bonus FPL points purely through their defensive work.
- Defenders will earn 2 extra FPL points if they make a combined 10 clearances, blocks, interceptions, and tackles (CBIT) in a single match.
- Midfielders and forwards also get rewarded, but they need 12 defensive contributions (ball recoveries included) to claim the same 2-point bonus.
Tactical takeaway:
This boosts the appeal of defensive-minded midfielders and budget defenders who rack up these stats even without goals or assists. Think of those tireless ball-winners who always seem to be in the right place at the right time.
Assists Made Simpler (and More Generous)
Assist rules have been overhauled to make them fairer and less subjective.
The Big Changes:
- Intended destination is no longer relevant for passes into the box, as long as there’s only one defensive touch before the goalscorer receives the ball. Even if it’s deflected to a different teammate, you still get the assist.
- No assist if:
- The defensive touch is a deliberate pass (like a bad backpass).
- The goalscorer loses and then regains possession.
- There are two defensive touches before the goal.
- Outside the box? Intended destination matters again.
- Assists will now be given if a goal comes from a free-kick or penalty awarded for handball, even if the handball wasn’t “forced.”
- One special twist: an attempted defensive pass that leads to a goal can still count as an assist, provided there’s only one defensive touch.
Tactical takeaway:
Creative players, especially wingers and full-backs, could get more assists from scrappy, deflected plays. This could boost the value of some mid-tier assist machines.
Two Sets of Chips: Double the Fun, Double the Pressure
We’re used to five chips: 2xWildcard, Free Hit, Triple Captain, and Bench Boost. This season, you get two full sets, one for each half of the campaign.
- First half chips must be used before GW19 (30 December 2025, 6:30 pm GMT).
- No chips can roll over to the second half.
Gone for good: The Assistant Manager chip introduced last year has been scrapped.
Tactical takeaway:
You can now be more aggressive with early chip use without fearing you’ll be left short later. Just don’t waste them in low-upside weeks.
Extra Transfers for AFCON Chaos
The Africa Cup of Nations (21 Dec 2025 – 18 Jan 2026) is going to hit hard, with key players heading off mid-season.
To help:
- In GW16, your free transfers will be topped up to a maximum of 5.
Tactical takeaway:
Plan now. If you own AFCON-bound stars, you’ll have the flexibility to pivot without a points hit.
Bonus Points System (BPS) Tweaks
The BPS, which decides post-match bonus points, has been refined:
- Ties resolved more fairly: If players tie for 1st, both get 3 points; ties for 2nd or 3rd follow similar logic.
- Goalkeeper saves: Now worth 3 BPS points for saves inside the box (previously 2 for any save) and 2 points for saves from outside. Penalty save BPS drops from 9 to 8.
- Goalline clearances: Up from 3 to 9 BPS points.
- Penalty goals: All players now earn 12 BPS points (previously higher for forwards and midfielders).
- Tackles: Each tackle won earns 2 BPS points, no deduction for tackles lost.
Tactical takeaway:
Keepers facing lots of close-range shots just became more appealing. Players with a knack for last-ditch defending could also sneak into BPS contention.
What This Means for Squad Building
With these changes, certain player types could rise in value:
- Budget midfield terriers like defensive mids could become bonus point magnets with the defensive contribution rule.
- Attacking full-backs might get more assists under the new pass-deflection rules.
- Reliable penalty takers benefit from the more balanced BPS system.
- High-save goalkeepers with poor defenses in front of them could earn more BPS from close-range stops.
And remember: chips are no longer a one-shot weapon. You have two Wildcards and two Free Hits in a season, use them well.
Final Word
The FPL 2025/26 changes might look like small tweaks on paper, but they’re going to shake up how points are earned and which players are worth your budget. Managers who adapt early and take advantage of the defensive contribution points, the new assist interpretations, and the doubled chip sets could be the ones topping mini-leagues come May.
Download the We Play FPL app to plan your transfers, compare players, and get points predictions so you can make smarter moves all season long.
May your arrows be green. Happy managing!
Chip Strategy
GW10 Rice: is he worth a £7.4m transfer?
Rice has five assists, but his £7.4m buying case needs a closer look. Weigh his creativity, goal threat and fixtures before using a GW10 transfer.
Keep Declan Rice for Hull at home if you own him and have a more urgent transfer to make. Buying him at £7.4m needs a stronger reason than his five assists and 47 points. You would be paying for a midfielder whose creativity has produced more returns than his underlying attacking numbers suggest.
Rice can reward owners against Hull. The concern for a new buyer is the price, his limited goal threat and the fixtures that follow. Before spending a transfer, decide whether you want him beyond GW10.
Five assists need some context
Rice has five assists against 2.01 expected assists this season. He has created chances, but projecting another five assists from the same level of creation would be optimistic. Expected assists describe the chances he has created; they do not forecast his next result or require him to blank to make up the difference.
His per-90 attacking rates sharpen the buying decision: 0.05 xG/90, 0.24 xA/90 and 0.29 xGI/90. He has averaged 84.4 minutes per match. At that level of goal threat, you are relying on his creativity for much of his attacking upside. He has scored no league goals so far.
Those season-to-date performance rates help explain how he has played. They are not a points prediction for Hull, and the average playing time does not guarantee his next start or workload.
Check the floor beneath the returns
Rice has collected seven bonus points. Those points count for his owners, but you should judge the next purchase on the scoring routes available in the coming matches. Budgeting for bonus alongside each assist would overstate the security of his returns.
His 8.76 DefCon/90 also gives little reason to assume a dependable cushion of defensive-contribution points. That rate measures defensive actions across his playing time; it does not guarantee threshold points in an individual fixture. Use the verified 84.4 average minutes per match alongside it, then leave room for variation in both workload and involvement.
Rice remains capable of a useful return. At £7.4m, a buyer needs to want his creative role enough to accept the limited goal threat, rather than treating his past points as a reliable weekly floor.
Look beyond Hull at home
Arsenal host Hull in GW10, then visit Newcastle in GW11 and host Manchester City in GW12. A transfer for Hull alone leaves you with another decision at the next deadline.
If you are considering Rice, compare players and upcoming fixtures in We Play FPL before committing the budget. Check how the purchase fits your midfield through Newcastle and Manchester City, including whether you would still choose him if you could not use another transfer on that slot.
Existing owners can give him the Hull match while fixing a weaker starting position. For a fresh purchase, favour a clear improvement to your XI over chasing the assists you missed. Rice makes sense if you want his creativity across the holding period and can accept the risk of quieter weeks. His recent returns alone are too thin a reason to spend £7.4m.
Fixtures
GW10 Calvert-Lewin injury doubt: hold or move to Evanilson?
Hold Calvert-Lewin if the fitness update supports a start and your cover works. For a fresh forward purchase, we prefer Evanilson at £6.4m.
Keep Calvert-Lewin if the final fitness update supports a start and you have cover you trust. For a fresh forward purchase, we prefer Evanilson. You can buy the Bournemouth forward without taking on Calvert-Lewin’s unresolved foot problem, while an existing owner has more reason to wait before spending a transfer.
Calvert-Lewin costs £6.1m and carries a foot-injury flag ahead of Leeds’ home match against Spurs. Evanilson costs £6.4m, has no current injury flag, and visits Ipswich in GW10. That £0.3m difference is a buying-price comparison: check your own selling value before planning the switch.
Calvert-Lewin owners can wait for the fitness update
The current flag gives Calvert-Lewin a 75% chance of playing. Treat that as unresolved availability, with no guarantee of a start or a full match. Owners should wait for the final update before deciding whether their squad needs a replacement.
Leeds host Spurs in GW10, visit Chelsea in GW11, then host Coventry in GW12. You can retain Calvert-Lewin for the two home fixtures if his fitness allows it, with a separate lineup decision for Chelsea away. Selling him before the injury picture clears could mean spending a transfer on a forward you would want to start again in GW12.
Check the substitute who would cover him. A playable bench option makes a hold easier to accept, but you still face the risk of Calvert-Lewin appearing for a short spell and blocking an automatic substitution. Managers who need him to complete their XI have more reason to consider a sale if the final update leaves his participation in doubt.
Evanilson is our preference for a new purchase
Evanilson offers a route into Bournemouth’s attack at £6.4m. After Ipswich away, he faces Nottingham Forest at home in GW11 and Fulham away in GW12. A new buyer can assess that run without inheriting an injury decision before the first match.
His season-to-date attacking rate is 0.55 expected goal involvements per 90 minutes, compared with Calvert-Lewin’s 0.48 xGI/90. Evanilson averages 83.7 min/match; Calvert-Lewin averages 85.9 min/match. Those are played averages, so Calvert-Lewin’s figure does not tell you how long he will play while managing the foot problem.
The difference in xGI/90 supports a preference for Evanilson, rather than a claim that he will outscore Calvert-Lewin this week. Both forwards have offered attacking involvement. For a new purchase, we favour Evanilson’s combination of availability and the upcoming fixtures; an owner considering a sale must weigh the transfer cost too.
Check the next three lineups before switching
Compare your XI with Calvert-Lewin available, your XI with him absent, and the team you could field after buying Evanilson. You can test those future lineups in We Play FPL before using a transfer. Include the GW11 and GW12 selections so you can see whether the move improves more than the immediate injury cover.
Use the switch to solve a starting-XI problem. If a positive fitness update lets you start Calvert-Lewin with confidence, keeping him preserves a transfer for another position. If he cannot play and your substitute would leave you short, Evanilson is a sensible replacement, provided you can afford him and have room within the club limit.
Make the final call before the GW10 deadline on Friday 6 November at 18:30 UTC. Our preference is to hold a fit Calvert-Lewin as an owner and buy Evanilson for a vacant forward slot. An unresolved injury that leaves your XI exposed is the reason to turn that buying preference into a sale.
Chip Strategy
GW10 captaincy: Haaland or Gabriel for the armband?
Haaland leads our GW10 captaincy picks, with Gabriel at home to Hull the alternative. Compare their scoring routes and check Calafiori’s workload.
Haaland gets our GW10 captaincy vote away to Forest. Gabriel is a credible alternative at home to Hull for managers willing to back Arsenal’s clean-sheet prospects and his attacking threat. Choose between those routes after checking selection news, with Haaland our first choice if you own both.
Gabriel’s home fixture deserves consideration. His season-long playing time and several ways to score make him more than a punt on a header. The trade-off is the weight you place on a defender’s clean sheet against Haaland’s stronger attacking involvement.
Haaland offers the stronger attacking case
Haaland averages 88.8 min/match and records 0.74 xG/90, with 0.84 xGI/90 once expected assists are included. At £15.8m, he takes a large share of the squad budget, but owners can captain him without spending a transfer or changing their team structure.
Manchester City visit Forest in GW10. The away venue gives Gabriel’s home match some appeal, though choosing Haaland still means backing the player with the more substantial attacking record in this comparison. His goal threat is the main reason for our preference.
These rates describe season-to-date performances. A 0.84 xGI/90 figure is neither a GW10 points prediction nor a promise of a goal involvement. Use it to judge the attacking case, then check whether new fitness or selection information changes your confidence before the deadline.
Gabriel gives you a different route to returns
Gabriel costs £8.0m and averages 90.0 min/match. He has 0.80 xGC/90 and 0.19 xGI/90, including 0.16 xG/90. Against Hull at home, managers can back the combination of defensive returns and his threat from set pieces.
His 9.00 DefCon/90 adds context to the defensive case. It measures defensive contributions per 90 minutes; it does not guarantee contribution points in this match. The same caution applies to clean sheets: xGC/90 measures expected goals conceded while he is on the pitch, rather than the chance of shutting out Hull.
Gabriel’s attacking rate sits below Haaland’s. That does not settle the captaincy by itself because defenders have other scoring routes, but it explains what you accept by choosing him. You put more weight on Arsenal keeping a clean sheet and on Gabriel adding another return.
For a manager who owns Gabriel without Haaland, he is a defensible captaincy option. For an owner of both, we lean Haaland unless fresh team news changes the assessment. Keep a purchase decision separate from the armband: Gabriel’s captaincy appeal this week alone does not justify spending a transfer and £8.0m.
Check Calafiori’s workload before choosing another Arsenal captain
Calafiori shares the Hull home fixture and costs £5.9m. He records a higher attacking-involvement rate than Gabriel at 0.29 xGI/90, alongside 0.85 xGC/90 and 4.64 DefCon/90. His average playing time is lower at 77.7 min/match.
That combination makes a selection check important. Reassess his workload after the midweek match and the available information about his next start. A good fixture gives little protection from reduced playing time, and a short appearance can leave you relying on the captain you chose rather than your vice-captain.
We prefer Gabriel within this Arsenal captaincy comparison unless team news gives a reason to change. Calafiori’s stronger xGI/90 alone is insufficient to move him ahead when Gabriel has the longer played average and stronger defensive-contribution rate. Neither historical average guarantees a start this weekend.
Make the call with the players you own
You can test captains and future line-ups in the We Play FPL planner before changing your live squad. Compare the armband choices within your current team, then consider transfers as a separate decision. A captaincy change costs no transfer; buying a player for one attractive fixture can affect several later weeks.
Our order is Haaland first, Gabriel the alternative, with Calafiori requiring a closer workload and selection check. Recheck availability before the GW10 deadline on 6 November at 18:30 UTC and choose a vice-captain you expect to play.
