The NEW Challenge

So, our new summer diversion is here.....

https://play.fifa.com/fantasy/

But how does it work?

Well, fortunately, it's pretty similar to the Fantasy Premier League game we're familiar with, in most respects.

Squad and team selection

You have to select a squad of 15 players, with an initial budget of $100 million (yes, dollars, not pounds - to make it more 'international'!); 2 goalkeepers, 5 defenders, 5 midfielders, and 3 forwards.

And the usual formation restrictions apply to your starting eleven: 1 keeper, at least 3 defenders, at least 3 midfielders, at least 1 forward.

Differences: The budget cap is increased to $105 million after the initial group phase; but player prices do not change during the tournament. [And the budget cap here is a beast. My opening effort was nearly 15 million over... Of course, it doesn't help that the running display of 'remaining budget' is at the very top of the screen, and disappears from view while you're scrolling up and down the player list to make selections!]

The 'club limit' is 3 players per club, just as in FPL, for the Group Phase. However, because the number of competing teams is progressively reduced through the tournament, this limit then increases for each subsequent round, to 4 per club for the Round-of-16, 5 per club for the quarter-finals, 6 per club for the semi-finals, and 8 per club for the final (as in the Fantasy games for the Euros and the World Cup).

Substitutions

Choosing a starting eleven, selecting a captain who will receive double points for the round (and a back-up vice-captain, who will receive that double-points bonus if your captain doesn't get any minutes), and setting your preferred bench order for back-up players to be auto-subbed in, if needed (because one of your starters doesn't play any minutes), likewise goes just the same as in FPL, except that.....

Differences: As with the Fantasy World Cup game, manual substitutions and changes of captaincy are allowed during the course of each 'MatchDay' (what they call the batch of games in one round of this tournament, rather than the 'Gameweek' that we have in FPL).

You can swap in any player from your bench whose match hasn't yet started (after their game has kicked off, they are considered 'locked' and you can no longer make use of them).

You can swap out, and then put back (if you want to) any member of your starting eleven whose match hasn't yet started. But more importantly - the purpose of this feature - you can remove a player whose match has been completed if you didn't like their score (though you can only replace them with someone who is yet to play, whose points return is unknown - so, it's a bit of a gamble).

Hence, unlike FPL, where you simply leave your weakest players on your bench, in this format, you could seek to stack the bench with players who have matches late in the 'MatchDay' - after most or all of your original starters have played, so that you'll have maximum options to make changes for a second chance.

You can also change your captaincy selection (once) during the 'MatchDay' (and the vice-captaincy too - although there doesn't seem to be any point in that... as the auto-subbing in of a vice-captain is disabled if you've made any manual changes!), if you don't like the return from your first pick. As with substitutions, above, you can only swap your captain pick to a player who has not yet played.

NB  Auto-substitutions work as in FPL, with your bench players replacing any of your starting eleven who don't play. However, auto-substitutions (and the vice-captain stepping in for a non-playing captain is treated as an auto-substitution) do not occur if you have made any manual substitutions or captaincy changes during the 'MatchDay'. [So, for each 'MatchDay', you have to choose whether you're going to try to tinker while the round is playing out, or just rely on auto-subs, as in FPL.]

Scoring

The points scoring is also much like in FPL, except that the awards for goals are quite different: forwards get 5 points rather than 4 for a goal, midfielders get 6 points, defenders get 7 points, and goalkeepers get a whopping 9 points. Goalkeepers and defenders also get 5 points rather than 4 for a clean sheet.

There is no BONUS POINTS SYSTEM in this game (hurrah!). But midfielders earn an additional 1 point for every 3 successful tackles and every 2 chances created. [So, it might be worth giving consideration to some more defensive midfielder options, especially for the last one or two spots in the squad, when budget is squeezed.]  Forwards receive an additional 1 point for every 2 shots on target.

You can also pick up an additional 1 point for a goal scored from a free-kick!

And the big novelty item in the scoring system here is what they call the 'Scouting Bonus' - which gives you an additional 2 points for any player scoring 4 or more points in the 'MatchDay' who is below 5% owned.

Because of this rather more generous points provision (and the fact that there are several really outstanding teams in this competition.... and rather a lot of makeweights; so, in all probability, a lot of very one-sided fixtures, especially in the Group Phase), we might get significantly higher team points from each batch of games than we do in FPL - well, potentially, anyway.

Transfers

You get 2 free transfers for the 2nd and 3rd Round games in the Group Phase; 4 free transfers for the quarter-finals, 5 for the semi-finals, and 6 for the final.

You can only 'roll' an unused free transfer over to the next 'MatchDay' between the 2nd and 3rd Group Phase games.

'Taking a hit' (spending points to purchase an additional transfer) only costs 3 points, rather than the 4 points we're used to in FPL.

You have unlimited transfers at the start of the tournament for the 1st Round of the Group Phase,... and also for the Round-of-16.

Chips

These are called 'Boosters' in the game.

Maximum Captain gives you double-points for your highest-scoring player in the round, without you having to designate a captain. (I rather like this one! Possibly the only novel rule that has ever appealed to me...)

12th Man allows you to select an additional player to receive points for in one round (a player entirely outside your current squad, and an entirely free choice unfettered by budget restrictions; i.e., you still have your regular squad and starting eleven - you're just getting extra points from some guy you don't own....).

Wildcard, just as in FPL, allows you to use unlimited transfers in one round. [This is probably best saved for the quarter-finals or semi-finals, where you might find yourself a bit short if you've guessed wrong about the outcomes of the previous round, and find yourself with a lot of players from eliminated teams....]

And, oh dear god, they've got a 'Mystery Booster' too - which they're not going to reveal until the knockout phase starts. I really, really hope it's not going to be a 'Manager' chip that gives points for team rather than individual performance. That idea was an abomination that ruined FPL for me last season.

You can find the complete 'rules' here (weirdly, labelled 'guidelines'): 

https://play.fifa.com/fantasy/help/guidelines

But be warned.... they are very, very badly written. I think you'll find my summary above much easier to follow.