Fantasy Premier League

Last updated

Fantasy Premier League (FPL) is the official free-to-play fantasy football game of the English Premier League. With over 11 million players in 2023, it is the largest fantasy football game of any domestic football league. [1]

Contents

History

Created by ISM (International Sports Multimedia) [2] and owned and operated by the Premier League, Fantasy Premier League was introduced in 2002 for the 2002–03 Premier League season. [3] It was launched in conjuction with the creation of the Premier League website. [4]

In its first season it had 76,200 players with first place winning a VIP trip to a Premier League match of their choice. [5] The player base has grown annually with the exception of the 2012–13 and 2023–24 seasonw, surpassing one million players for the first time during the 2006–07 season and over 10 million entries for the first time during the 2022–23 campaign.

Gameplay

Classic

Draft

As well as the standard format, FPL introduced a draft mode for the first time in 2017. In this instance, managers join small private leagues of between 2–16 managers. There is no budget and instead managers take turns to select players for their 15-man squads. However, once a player has been selected, they are not available for any other managers to select. [7]

Challenge

In March 2024, FPL launched a DFS game called FPL Challenge. The mode is separate to the main game and requires players to build a squad for one single gameweek with a particular challenge unique to that gameweek also active e.g. unlimited budget, players in certain positions or for certain clubs score double etc. Unlike the classic and draft modes, the game is a short-form "daily" game with scores resetting back to zero after each round meaning there are no cumulative season-long leaderboards and prizes are awarded to the top three scoring managers for each individual round. [8]

Winners

List of Fantasy Premier League champions
SeasonPlayers [1] WinnerNationalityTeam namePointsRef
2002–0376kGraeme HaddowFlag of South Africa.svg  South Africa Wee Wullie Winkie FC1,940 [nb 1] [9]
2003–04312kMuir O'ConnorFlag of Ireland.svg  Ireland The Lonely 112,151 [10]
2004–05472kAndy TomlinsFlag of England.svg  England Palace Excile2,253 [11]
2005–06810kTommy WilsonBlue Bridge Brigade2,326 [10]
2006–071.27mMike DolanDivers & Cheats XI2,268 [10]
2007–081.70mJohn FrisinaFlag of Australia (converted).svg  Australia FRISK UTD2,466 [12]
2008–091.95mSir MoultFlag of Australia (converted).svg  Australia MOULTANIC2,264 [10]
2009–102.10mJon ReesonFlag of England.svg  England Westfield Irons2,668 [13]
2010–112.35mChris McGurnFlag of England.svg  England Morons FC2,372 [14]
2011–122.78mSam PaterFlag of England.svg  England SamCity2,414 [15]
2012–132.61mMatt MartyniakFlag of England.svg  England Divine Mercy2,472 [16]
2013–143.22mTom FenleyFlag of England.svg  England Captain Suarez!2,634 [17]
2014–153.5mSimon MarchFlag of England.svg  England Atletico Marchid**2,470 [18]
2015–163.73mDimitri NicolaouFlag of England.svg  England Dimitris gavles2,458 [19]
2016–174.50mBen CrabtreeFlag of England.svg  England FC Crab Dogg2,564 [20]
2017–185.19mYusuf SheikhFlag of Tanzania.svg  Tanzania Yusuf's Team2,512 [21]
2018–196.32mAdam LevyFlag of New Zealand.svg  New Zealand #TheyAreUs2,659 [22]
2019–207.63mJoshua Bull [nb 2] Flag of England.svg  England The Bulldozers2,557 [24]
2020–218.15mMichael CooneFlag of Ireland.svg  Ireland Teddy Bears Utd2,680 [25]
2021–229.17mJamie PigottFlag of the United States (23px).png  United States Futbol Is Life2,844 [26]
2022–2311.45mAli JahangirovFlag of Azerbaijan.svg  Azerbaijan FPL Gunz2,776 [27]
2023–2410.91mJonas Sand LåbakkFlag of Norway.svg  Norway Onkel Blaa2,799
  1. ↑ Points did not start accumulating in the first FPL season until gameweek 7 with the first six weeks considered preseason, allowing players to familiarise themselves with the game. [6]
  2. ↑ Aleksander Antonov finished on 2,575 points but was disqualified two weeks later by FPL "due to a breach of our terms." [23]

Highest scoring players

Below is a list of players who have finished a season as the highest-scoring Fantasy Premier League player.

Number of multiple wins shown in brackets.
Highest scoring players per season
SeasonPlayerPositionStarting priceClubPointsRef
2002–03 Thierry Henry Forward£11.0m Arsenal 271 [28]
2003–04 Thierry Henry (2)ForwardArsenal242 [29]
2004–05 Frank Lampard Midfielder£10.0m Chelsea 269 [30]
2005–06 Thierry Henry (3)Forward£14.0mArsenal239 [31]
2006–07 Cristiano Ronaldo Midfielder£10.0m Manchester United 244 [32]
2007–08 Cristiano Ronaldo (2)Midfielder£12.0mManchester United283 [33]
2008–09 Frank Lampard (2)Midfielder£11.0mChelsea226 [29]
2009–10 Frank Lampard (3)MidfielderChelsea284 [29]
2010–11 Luis Nani Midfielder£8.0mManchester United198 [34]
2011–12 Robin van Persie Forward£12.0mArsenal269 [35]
2012–13 Robin van Persie (2)Forward£13.0mManchester United262 [36]
2013–14 Luis Suárez Forward£11.0m Liverpool 295 [37]
2014–15 Eden Hazard Midfielder£10.0mChelsea233 [38]
2015–16 Riyad Mahrez Midfielder£5.5m Leicester City 240 [39]
2016–17 Alexis Sánchez Midfielder£11.0mArsenal264 [40]
2017–18 Mohamed Salah Midfielder£9.0mLiverpool303 [41]
2018–19 Mohamed Salah (2)Midfielder£13.0mLiverpool259 [42]
2019–20 Kevin De Bruyne Midfielder£9.5m Manchester City 251 [43]
2020–21 Bruno Fernandes Midfielder£10.5mManchester United244 [44]
2021–22 Mohamed Salah (3)Midfielder£12.5mLiverpool265 [31]
2022–23 Erling Haaland Forward£11.5mManchester City272 [45]
2023–24 Cole Palmer Midfielder£5.0mChelsea244

Other games

As well as the Premier League's own official game, there are numerous other fantasy football games based on Premier League play, some of which predate FPL. Media outlets such as The Telegraph and Sky Sports offer cash prizes for winning their own variations of the classic format. [46] [47] Draft Fantasy Football is an indepedent platform that offers both snake and auction draft games. [48] FanTeam is a gambling site that offers daily games as well as a pay-to-enter season-long game. [49] Sorare is a cryptocurrency-based game where users create teams by collecting and trading player cards and NFTs. The company signed an official four-year licensing deal with the Premier League in January 2023. [50]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fantasy football (gridiron)</span> Reality-based football game

Fantasy football is a game in which the participants serve as owners and general managers of virtual professional American football teams. The competitors select their rosters by participating in a draft in which all relevant National Football League (NFL) players are available. Fantasy points are awarded in weekly matchups based on the actual performances of football players in real-world competition. The game typically involves the NFL, but can also involve other leagues, such as the Canadian Football League or NCAA.

Fantasy hockey is a form of fantasy sport where players build a team that competes with other players who do the same, based on the statistics generated by professional hockey players or teams. The majority of fantasy hockey pools are based on the teams and players of the ice hockey National Hockey League (NHL).

Fantasy football is a game in which participants assemble an imaginary team of real life football players and score points based on those players' actual statistical performance or their perceived contribution on the field of play. Usually fantasy football games are based on one division in a particular country, although there are variations. Fantasy football is now a significant industry due to websites dedicated to developing the fantasy football community, and betting sites hosting their own fantasy football games.

In English football, a gulf has arisen between the finances of clubs from the Premier League and English Football League since the First Division clubs broke away to form the Premier League in 1992. Some have argued that this disparity is wider than in other European leagues where the top flight is combined with at least one division below in a league, such as Germany's Bundesliga, Italy's Serie A and Spain's La Liga. However, England has five tiers of single national divisions, compared to only two in Spain and Italy and three in Germany.

Fantasy basketball is a game in which the participants serve as owners and general managers of virtual professional basketball teams. The competitors select their rosters by participating in a draft in which all relevant National Basketball Association (NBA) players are available. Fantasy points are awarded in weekly matchups based on the actual performances of basketball players in real-world competition. The game typically involves the NBA, but can also involve other leagues, such as the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) or NCAA.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Erik Karlsson</span> Swedish ice hockey player (born 1990)

Erik Sven Gunnar Karlsson is a Swedish professional ice hockey defenceman for the Pittsburgh Penguins of the National Hockey League (NHL). Karlsson was drafted in the first round, 15th overall, by the Ottawa Senators at the 2008 NHL Entry Draft, with whom he spent his first nine NHL seasons; he has also played for the San Jose Sharks. Karlsson is a three-time winner of the James Norris Memorial Trophy as the NHL's best defenceman, winning the award in 2012, 2015, and 2023.

The 2009–10 Ukrainian Premier League season was the nineteenth since its establishment and second since its reorganization. Dynamo Kyiv were the defending champions, having won their 13th league title. A total of 16 teams participated in the league, 14 of which participated in the 2008–09 season, and two of which were promoted from the Ukrainian First League.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2010–11 Premier League</span> 19th season of the Premier League

The 2010–11 Premier League was the 19th season of the Premier League since its establishment in 1992. The 2010–11 fixtures were released on 17 June 2010 at 09:00 BST. The season began on 14 August 2010, and ended on 22 May 2011. Chelsea were the defending champions.

During the 1993–94 English football season, Tottenham Hotspur F.C. competed in the FA Premier League.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2011–12 Premier League</span> 20th season of the Premier League

The 2011–12 Premier League was the 20th season of the Premier League since its establishment in 1992. The season began on 13 August 2011 and ended on 13 May 2012 with Manchester City sealing their third league title – their first since 1968 – with victory over Queens Park Rangers on the final day. The title was City's first Premier League success, making them the fifth club to win the Premier League in its 20-year history. City finished level on 89 points with Manchester United, but they had a superior goal difference to their local rivals, making it the only time the Premier League had been won on goal difference.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mark Stone</span> Canadian ice hockey player (born 1992)

Mark Stone is a Canadian professional ice hockey right winger and captain of the Vegas Golden Knights of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected by the Ottawa Senators in the sixth round, 178th overall, of the 2010 NHL Entry Draft.

The 2012–13 Premier League was the 21st season of the Premier League, the English professional league for association football clubs, since its establishment in 1992, and the 114th season of top-flight English football overall. The fixture schedule was released on 18 June 2012. The season began on 18 August 2012 and ended on 19 May 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joffrey Lauvergne</span> French basketball player (born 1991)

Joffrey Lauvergne is a French professional basketball player for LDLC ASVEL of the French LNB Pro A and the EuroLeague. He was drafted 55th overall by the Memphis Grizzlies in the 2013 NBA draft, who then traded his rights to the Denver Nuggets.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2014–15 Premier League</span> 23rd season of the Premier League

The 2014–15 Premier League was the 23rd season of the Premier League, the top English professional league for association football clubs, since its establishment in 1992, and the 116th season of top-flight English football overall. The fixtures were announced on 18 June 2014. The season started on 16 August 2014 and concluded on 24 May 2015.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2016–17 Ukrainian Premier League</span> 26th season of top-tier football league in Vyshcha Liha

The 2016–17 Ukrainian Premier League season is the 26th top-level football club competitions since the fall of the Soviet Union and the ninth since the establishment of the Ukrainian Premier League. The league is scheduled to play its first 18 rounds before the winter break finishing its first stage of tournament in March. The second stage is scheduled to start on 1 April 2017 and finish on 31 May 2017.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nico Hischier</span> Swiss ice hockey player (born 1999)

Nico Hischier is a Swiss professional ice hockey centre and captain of the New Jersey Devils of the National Hockey League (NHL). Hischier made his professional debut in his native Switzerland in 2015, spending time both in the top-tier National League A (NLA) and the second-tier National League B. He moved to North America for the 2016–17 season to play major junior hockey for the Halifax Mooseheads of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) in hopes of furthering his hockey career; in his first season in the QMJHL, he was named rookie of the year, along with the award for best rookie in the Canadian Hockey League (CHL), the governing body for major junior hockey in Canada. Internationally Hischier has represented Switzerland at several junior tournaments, including two World Junior Championships. Regarded as a strong two-way forward and a top prospect for the 2017 NHL Entry Draft, Hischier was selected first overall by the Devils, the first time a Swiss player was selected first overall, and made his NHL debut in 2017. He was named captain of the Devils in 2021.

Sorare is a fantasy sport cryptocurrency-based video game. It was developed in 2018 by Nicolas Julia and Adrien Montfort. There are 3 sports in Sorare: football, basketball, and baseball. It is available for Android, iOS and web browsers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2021–22 Chelsea F.C. season</span> 116th season in existence of Chelsea F.C.

The 2021–22 season was Chelsea Football Club's 116th year in existence and 33rd consecutive season in the top flight of English football. In addition to the domestic league, Chelsea participated in this season's editions of the FA Cup, EFL Cup, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup. The season covered the period from 1 July 2021 to 30 June 2022.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2021–22 Manchester City F.C. season</span> 120th season in existence of Manchester City F.C.

The 2021–22 season was the 120th season in the existence of Manchester City Football Club and their 20th consecutive season in the top flight of English football. In addition to the domestic league, Manchester City also participated in this season's editions of the FA Cup, EFL Cup, Community Shield and UEFA Champions League.

References

  1. 1 2 "Season by Season FPL Managers Growth". ALLABOUTFPL. 1 June 2022.
  2. ↑ "The Online Era: The History of Fantasy Football". fpltips.com. 5 June 2023.
  3. ↑ "The FPL Era: The History of Fantasy Football". fpltips.com. 6 June 2023.
  4. ↑ "Fantasy Premier League (Info)". fantasy.premierleague.com (Web Archive). Archived from the original on 2002-10-16. Retrieved 2023-07-29.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  5. ↑ "Fantasy Premier League (Prizes)". fantasy.premierleague.com (Web Archive). Archived from the original on 2002-10-16. Retrieved 2023-07-29.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  6. 1 2 Reeves, Jamie (6 June 2023). "The FPL Era: The History of Fantasy Football (Part 3)". FPL Tips.
  7. ↑ Rehman, Abdul. "How to play Fantasy Premier League Draft". The New York Times.
  8. ↑ Shand, Holly (25 March 2024). "What is the new FPL Challenge game?". The Athletic.
  9. ↑ "Genesis of Fantasy Premier League". FPL Discovery. 12 May 2014.
  10. 1 2 3 4 "List of FPL Winners Since The First FPL Season in 2002/03". ALLABOUTFPL. 6 June 2022.
  11. ↑ "Fantasy Premier League? Completed it, mate!". Crystal Palace F.C. 31 March 2019.
  12. ↑ "Fantasy football winner reveals secrets of success". CNN.
  13. ↑ "An Interview with Jon Reeson". Fantasy Football Scout. 30 May 2010.
  14. ↑ "View From The Top - An Interview with Chris McGurn". Fantasy Football Scout. 21 May 2011.
  15. ↑ "FPL champion reveals nerve-racking season finale". www.premierleague.com.
  16. ↑ "Fantasy winner reveals simple secret of success". www.premierleague.com.
  17. ↑ "How 2013/14 FPL champion sculpted perfect season". www.premierleague.com.
  18. ↑ "Flexibility key to FPL champion's success". www.premierleague.com.
  19. ↑ "Premier Leagu's Interview with FPL 2015/16 Winner Dimitri Nicolaou". Fantasy Premier League Happy Hour. 25 May 2016.
  20. ↑ "Meet the boss who beat 4.5 million managers to top spot". BBC Sport.
  21. ↑ "Yusuf Sheikh wins FPL Crown". Fantasy Football Scout. 13 May 2018.
  22. ↑ "Fantasy Premier League: The Kiwi who defied the odds". RNZ. 15 May 2019.
  23. ↑ "Fantasy Premier League champion disqualified and stripped of title". The Independent. 11 August 2020.
  24. ↑ "Fantasy Premier League new winner after disqualification". BBC News. 11 August 2020.
  25. ↑ ""It went to the bitter end" – Meet the Irish man who toppled 8.3m players to win Fantasy Premier League". Irish Independent. 24 May 2021.
  26. ↑ "Liverpool differentials steer US manager to FPL glory". www.premierleague.com.
  27. ↑ "Azerbaijan's Ali Jahangirov crowned winner of 2022-23 Fantasy Premier League". www.t-vine.com.
  28. ↑ "Thierry Henry's 2002/03 Season Record". Reddit. 2 June 2022.
  29. 1 2 3 Marco, Raphael (4 July 2023). "The Highest FPL Points Scorers In Each Season So Far". GiveMeSport. Retrieved 19 February 2024.
  30. ↑ "2004–05 Fantasy Premier League player list". 9 August 2004. Archived from the original on 9 August 2004. Retrieved 17 March 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  31. 1 2 S, Srinivasan (4 June 2023). "Most Expensive FPL Players Ever Since the 2002/03 Season". ALLABOUTFPL. Retrieved 18 February 2024.
  32. ↑ "2006–07 Fantasy Premier League player list". 19 July 2006. Archived from the original on 19 July 2006. Retrieved 17 March 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  33. ↑ "2007–08 Fantasy Premier League player list". 10 August 2007. Archived from the original on 10 August 2007. Retrieved 17 March 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  34. ↑ "Team of the Season - Nani". Fantasy Football Scout. 31 May 2011.
  35. ↑ "First Impressions - FPL 2011/12 Price Guide". Fantasy Football Scout. 21 July 2011.
  36. ↑ "Team of the Season - Robin Van Persie". Fantasy Football Scout. 3 June 2013.
  37. ↑ "Team of the Season - Luis Suarez". Fantasy Football Scout. 23 May 2014.
  38. ↑ "Team of the Season - Eden Hazard". Fantasy Football Scout. 31 May 2015.
  39. ↑ "Best Bargain FPL Assets of All Time". ALLABOUTFPL. 25 June 2023.
  40. ↑ "Sanchez takes centre stage for Fantasy midfielders". www.premierleague.com. 27 May 2017.
  41. ↑ "Team of the Season - Mohamed Salah". Fantasy Football Scout. 27 May 2018.
  42. ↑ "FPL prices: Salah drops and stays in midfield". www.premierleague.com. 27 June 2019.
  43. ↑ "2019/20 Season Review". Fantasy Football Fix. 28 July 2020.
  44. ↑ "FPL in demand: Price rise not putting managers off Fernandes". www.premierleague.com. 27 June 2021.
  45. ↑ "How much should Haaland cost in FPL next season?". Fantasy Football Community. 11 June 2023.
  46. ↑ "Telegraph Fantasy Football help". Telegraph.
  47. ↑ "Sky FantasyFootball". www.skysports.com.
  48. ↑ "Getting Started - Draft Fantasy Football". Draft Fantasy Blog.
  49. ↑ "FanTeam - Daily Fantasy & Betting". www.fanteam.com.
  50. ↑ "Premier League backs Sorare's NFT fantasy football game despite crypto crash". www.ft.com.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.