FPL Rule Changes 2026/27

Five things changed for Fantasy Premier League 2026/27, and one of them is a removal.

1. The Assistant Manager chip has been REMOVED. It is not in the game. 2. The Bonus Points System has been rebuilt — being tackled no longer costs you, clearances/blocks/interceptions are worth less, and goalkeepers gain a new big-chance-save bonus. 3. Gameweek scores are now final at 09:00 UK time the day after the last match, not one hour after the final whistle. 4. Your world rank and mini-league positions now update live during matches, including head-to-head and FPL Cup ties. 5. There are no extra December free transfers this season, because AFCON is not scheduled in 2026/27.

Chips, budget, squad rules and free-transfer banking are otherwise unchanged. The full detail is below, and every figure on this page comes from the Premier League's own 2026/27 announcements and the live FPL game data.

This is the change most managers get wrong, so it is worth stating plainly: there is no Assistant Manager chip in FPL 2026/27.

Introduced in 2024/25, it is not part of the 2026/27 game. You get four chip types, twice each — Wildcard, Free Hit, Bench Boost and Triple Captain — and nothing else. Any 26/27 guide still telling you to plan an Assistant Manager window was written before the Premier League confirmed the change and has not been updated.

Practical effect: the fixture-planning gymnastics people did around picking a manager for a favourable run are simply gone. Chip strategy this season is the classic four.

You get two complete sets of four chips: Wildcard, Free Hit, Bench Boost, Triple Captain. Eight chips in total across the season.

SET ONE runs to Gameweek 19 and EXPIRES at the Gameweek 19 deadline — 13:30 GMT on Saturday 2 January 2027. Anything unused at that moment is lost. This is the single most common way managers waste value, because the deadline lands in the middle of the festive congestion when attention is elsewhere.

SET TWO refreshes after Gameweek 19 and runs to Gameweek 38.

Timing rules that matter: • Only ONE chip can be played in a single gameweek. Not two, in any combination. • Bench Boost and Triple Captain ARE available in Gameweek 1. • Wildcard and Free Hit are NOT available in Gameweek 1 — both open from Gameweek 2. • If you play your first Free Hit in Gameweek 19, you cannot play the second one in Gameweek 20.

The 1–2–3 bonus allocation per match is unchanged, and so are the tiebreakers. What changed is how the underlying BPS score is earned. The Premier League's stated aim was to reduce the overlap between defensive contribution points and bonus points, and to improve the outlook for goalkeepers, full-backs and attacking players.

BEING TACKLED: was −1 BPS. Now removed entirely. Dribblers stop being punished for dribbling — this is a direct upgrade for wingers and ball-carrying full-backs.

CLEARANCES, BLOCKS AND INTERCEPTIONS: was 1 BPS per 2 CBI. Now 1 BPS per 3. Centre-backs who were double-dipping — banking defensive contribution points and BPS for the same actions — earn less from the bonus side.

GOALKEEPER SAVES: restructured. Every save is now a flat 2 BPS, with 1 extra BPS if the save is made inside the box, and a NEW 1 BPS for saving a big chance.

PENALTY SAVES: reduced from 8 BPS to 7, offset by the new big-chance-save bonus.

Projected bonus points now also appear after 20 minutes of a match and adjust as it goes.

Gameweek scores used to settle roughly an hour after the final whistle. For 2026/27 they finalise at 09:00 UK time the day after the last match of the gameweek, giving time for post-match data to be reviewed.

What this means for you: the score you see on Sunday night is provisional. Bonus points, defensive contributions and assists can still move overnight. Do not make a transfer decision — or declare a mini-league won — on Sunday-night numbers.

LIVE RANK: your world ranking and mini-league positions now update continuously during matches, including head-to-head duels and FPL Cup ties. Third-party live-rank trackers existed precisely because the official game did not do this; it does now.

CAREER HISTORY: you can see your career average across every season you have played, and where that ranks as a percentage against managers globally.

NO EXTRA DECEMBER TRANSFERS: in 2025/26, managers were given extra free transfers around the Africa Cup of Nations. AFCON is not scheduled during 2026/27, so there is no equivalent this season. Plan your December squad on your own free transfers.

Worth knowing what to stop worrying about.

• Budget is £100.0m. Squad is 15 players. Maximum 3 from any one club. • One free transfer per gameweek, bankable up to a maximum of 5. Additional transfers still cost −4. • Defensive contribution points continue as in 2025/26. • The 1–2–3 bonus split per match, and the BPS tiebreakers, are untouched. • Price changes still run off net transfer activity. The official game now ships its own price-change predictor, refreshing through the day.

As of 26 July 2026, 1,606,483 squads had already been registered for the new season.

Three practical reads, stated as judgements rather than projections.

GOALKEEPERS ARE MORE INTERESTING THAN USUAL. A flat 2 BPS per save, +1 inside the box, +1 for a big chance, means a busy keeper behind a mid-table defence now accumulates bonus in games his team is losing. That is a genuinely new source of points for the cheapest position on the pitch.

BALL-CARRIERS GOT A QUIET RAISE. Removing the −1 for being tackled disproportionately helps the players who take defenders on. If you were choosing between a dribbler and a safe passer at the same price, the tiebreak moved.

PUT 2 JANUARY IN YOUR CALENDAR NOW. The Gameweek 19 chip expiry is the highest-cost date of the season and it sits in the week most managers are least engaged. Onside's chip planner tracks which of your first-set chips are still unplayed as that deadline approaches.