---

All Fantasy Premier League 2025/26 Changes Explained

Fantasy Premier League (FPL) is one of the most popular fantasy sports games in the world, engaging millions of football fans every season. The game allows participants to build virtual squads using real Premier League players, earning points based on their performances in matches. Over the years, FPL has undergone several rule changes to make the game fairer and more engaging. One of the biggest changes in FPL this season is the addition of Defensive Contribution (DEFCON) points to make defenders and central defensive midfielders more lucrative. This article talks about all the changes in the 2025/26 Premier League season.

Fantasy Premier League 2025/26 Changes

Credit: CNN

Defensive Contributions (DEFCON)

One of the most exciting innovations in Fantasy Premier League 2025/26 is the introduction of Defensive Contributions (DEFCON). This new scoring category aims to reward defenders and defensive midfielders more fairly, recognising their impact beyond just clean sheets. Players will now earn points for defensive actions such as blocks, interceptions, clearances, recoveries, and tackles. This change is expected to shift FPL strategies significantly. In past seasons, managers often prioritised attacking defenders like Trent Alexander-Arnold. However, centre-backs like Virgil van Dijk or William Saliba become more attractive because of their defensive solidity. Even defensive midfielders, often overlooked in FPL, could become viable budget options if they rack up contributions regularly.

More Chips

The 2025/26 FPL season also introduces an expanded selection of chips, giving managers more tactical tools to navigate the campaign. Until now, players relied on classic chips like Wildcard, Bench Boost, Free Hit, and Triple Captain. Last year also had an additional chip called the Assistant Manager chip, but this was a swing and a miss, and FPL creators decided to part ways with it after just one season. Managers were always given two Wildcards, one for the first half and one for the second half. However, the other chips were one-time use only. However, in the 2025/26 Fantasy Premier League season, managers will be able to use all the chips twice.

---

ALSO READ: Arsenal’s Top 10 Most Expensive Signings

---

Changes In The Assist Rules

The assist rules in Fantasy Premier League have long been debated, and the 2025/26 season finally brings major changes. Traditionally, an assist was only awarded for the final pass leading directly to a goal. However, FPL also included ‘secondary involvements’, such as winning a penalty or free-kick that results in a goal, and crucial deflections that still create a clear scoring opportunity. One of the biggest changes this year is that FPL assists will be given even for a deflected cross, unlike last season. This will help players get even more assists and allow managers to earn more points in the 2025/26 FPL season.

Brand new for the 2025/26 season 🤩

Introducing defensive contribution points 🛡️#FPL pic.twitter.com/LAseSwN2DO

— Fantasy Premier League (@OfficialFPL) July 18, 2025

Additional Transfers For AFCON

One of the biggest challenges in previous Fantasy Premier League seasons has been dealing with the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), where several top Premier League players leave mid-season to represent their countries. The 2025/26 season introduces a solution by granting managers additional free transfers during this period. AFCON takes place from 21st December 2025 to 18th January 2026, involving Gameweeks 17-22. However, as some players may leave ahead of Gameweek 16, free transfers in Fantasy will be topped up to the maximum possible number of five in Gameweek 16. This will help managers remove players who leave for AFCON and manage their teams without any problems.

Changes In Bonus Points System

The Bonus Points System (BPS) in Fantasy Premier League has always been one of the most discussed elements of the game, and for 2025/26, various refinements have been introduced. The BPS utilises a range of statistics supplied by Opta that capture actions on the pitch to create a performance score for every player. For goalkeepers this season, the shot location will be the determining factor for how many BPS points keepers get. The importance of goal-line clearances has been recognised, and BPS has improved from three points to nine points. The BPS for penalty points has been reduced to 12 for this season, and each tackle won in a match will be rewarded with two BPS points.

For more news articles and informative updates on the Fantasy Premier League (FPL) as well as other football and cricket updates, keep reading GutshotMagazine.com.

---

---

More News

---

Comments