A beginner’s guide to the free-to-play SPITCH Fantasy game

Sponsored by SPITCH

Imagine having a Free Hit chip to play every week and getting the chance to win money from your Fantasy knowledge…

Not just that, but still being in with a shout of winning big after a terrible first 30-odd Gameweeks!

Well, that’s exactly the case with SPITCH, the brand new fantasy football manager game.

Their £2,500 season-long game is free to play and we’ll be explaining more on that in the article below, along with the other ways to get involved with this fun new app.

GET STARTED WITH SPITCH

WHAT IS SPITCH?

SPITCH is a platform where managers can use their football knowledge to defeat others and win money prizes.

Until now, they have focused exclusively on individual matchdays but are debuting a longer-term challenge for the 2022/23 campaign.

As with Fantasy Premier League (FPL), managers commit to a formation and have a budget to buy players for their line-up, in the quest to score points and win prizes.

But unlike FPL, managers can actually go under or over their budget – this will determine how many positive or negative points they begin the round with. More differences are explored later on.

Furthermore, SPITCH users can create their own community to compete against friends, family or colleagues.

WAYS TO PLAY

There are three pitches to choose from in ‘Classic’ mode:

• Biggest Winning Zone: Either free or paid-entry, there are smaller winnings but an equal amount for the top 70% of participants.
• Double or Nothing: The best 42.5% get twice their stake back, regardless of how much higher they finish.
• Tournament: Rewards more money for higher-placed finishes, with a winning zone of 25%.

Additionally, in the new ‘Season’ mode:

• Free entry: A guaranteed prize pool of £2,500 for the top ten.
• £5 entry: A guaranteed prize pool of £50,000, split amongst the best 25%.

In season mode, managers are required to enter a new line-up each match day and your best five match days throughout the season count. So in effect, you’ll still be in with a chance of success come April.

CHOOSING YOUR LINE-UP

So, as mentioned, SPITCH managers don’t have the same worries about only having room for two attacking premiums with their ₵1,200 budget. They can own them all – just at a points cost!

For example, if you spend ₵1,450 on a starting XI, your team starts the matchday on -250 points.

There is a range of standard formations to pick from but also some different ones, including 4-2-4 and 3-3-4. From there, managers can treat each week like an FPL Free Hit, as the squad does not need to carry over, making it a game of short-term decisions.

DIFFERENCES TO FPL

Meanwhile, there are various other differences between SPITCH and FPL. There are no captains in season mode – so none of that pesky effective ownership – but up to nine players can be selected from the same club, rather than three.

Even better, line-ups can be altered during a matchday if those players haven’t yet kicked off – even if it’s the last game of the day!

Those who are unable to respond to team news can make use of a ‘Safety Net’ feature, where non-starters will usually be replaced by a teammate of similar or lower value.

Above are the different ways for players to score or lose points. More actions are rewarded than in FPL, such as individual shots, crosses, passes and tackles. It’s also much easier to lose points, with punishments for wayward passes, off-target shots and goalkeepers not saving a penalty.

It should be noted that names like Mohamed Salah, Raheem Sterling, Jadon Sancho and Jarrod Bowen are classified as forwards in SPITCH, yet Son Heung-min, Kai Havertz and Bukayo Saka are listed as midfielders.

LAST SEASON

When looking at last season’s final totals, it’s interesting – and refreshing when we consider the irrelevance of defensive shields in FPL – to see Rodri on top of all midfielders. He ranked OK but not brilliantly for CBI (clearances, blocks and interceptions), yet was number one in his position for successful passes (2,629). Only one other exceeded 2,000. Slow and steady won the race.

Also of note is that Virgil van Dijk bettered Trent Alexander-Arnold and Son came ahead of Salah.

JOIN THE FANTASY FOOTBALL SCOUT COMMUNITY ON SPITCH

You can join other Fantasy Football Scout users in our community on Spitch here.

GET STARTED WITH SPITCH ON WEB OR MOBILE

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