UEFA Champions League Fantasy is back for the 2026/27 season, giving Fantasy managers another chance to build a squad from Europe’s elite clubs.
With 17 Matchdays stretching from the league phase through to the final, there are some significant differences to Fantasy Premier League (FPL) that new players need to know.
Manual substitutions, captaincy changes within a Matchday, ball recoveries and two very different chips all form part of the game.
In this beginner’s guide, we explain how Champions League Fantasy works, from building your first 15-man squad to transfers, chips, scoring and prizes.
HOW DO YOU BUILD A CHAMPIONS LEAGUE FANTASY SQUAD?
Managers start the season with a €100m budget to select 15 players:
- Two goalkeepers
- Five defenders
- Five midfielders
- Three forwards
That budget increases to €105m after the league phase.
During the league phase, managers can select a maximum of three players from the same club. That restriction gradually increases as teams are eliminated.
| Stage | Maximum players per club |
|---|---|
| League phase | 3 |
| Knockout phase play-offs | 4 |
| Round of 16 | 4 |
| Quarter-finals | 5 |
| Semi-finals | 6 |
| Final | 8 |
Your starting XI must contain one goalkeeper, at least three defenders, at least two midfielders and at least one forward.
HOW DO MATCHDAYS WORK?
One of the biggest differences between Champions League Fantasy and FPL is that most Matchdays take place across multiple days.
There are 17 Matchdays in total: eight during the league phase, followed by the knockout phase play-offs, round of 16, quarter-finals, semi-finals and final.
Matchday 1 is spread across three days, from Tuesday 8 September to Thursday 10 September.
Crucially, your team isn’t necessarily finished once the first matches kick off.
After the opening day’s fixtures have been completed, managers can make manual substitutions and change their captain to players who are yet to play.
This makes managing your squad throughout each Matchday a fundamental part of the game.
CAPTAINCY
Your captain scores double points.
However, unlike FPL, you don’t necessarily have to stick with your original choice.
If your captain plays early in the Matchday and disappoints, you can move the armband to another player whose club is still to play.
There is a risk attached. Once you switch captain, you lose the double points from your original captain and can’t reverse the decision.
You also can’t give the armband to somebody who has already played.
This makes players competing on the earlier days particularly useful captaincy options, as they effectively give managers another opportunity later in the Matchday if the first pick blanks.
MANUAL SUBSTITUTIONS
Champions League Fantasy also allows managers to make substitutions while a Matchday is in progress.
Once all of the matches on one day have finished, you can replace up to four players with substitutes whose teams are still to play. However, players who have been sent off can’t be substituted.
The important part is that you’re giving up the points already scored by the player you remove.
For example, if one of your Tuesday midfielders scores two points, you could replace him with a benched midfielder playing on Wednesday. The original player’s two points would then be lost and replaced by whatever your substitute scores.
You can’t bring on someone who has already played.
Manual changes aren’t possible on Matchday 8 or Matchday 17 because all fixtures take place simultaneously, leaving no later games to make substitutions or captaincy changes for.
AUTOMATIC SUBSTITUTIONS
Automatic substitutions can take place if a member of your starting XI doesn’t feature.
However, there is an important catch: making a manual change during the Matchday disables automatic substitutions for that Matchday.
That includes:
- Making a manual substitution
- Changing your captain
- Altering your bench priority
So managers need to pay close attention before making changes.
Formation rules still apply when automatic substitutions are made.
HOW MANY FREE TRANSFERS DO YOU GET?
Before Matchday 1, you can make unlimited transfers while staying within your €100m budget.
Once the league phase begins, managers receive two free transfers per Matchday.
Only one unused free transfer can be carried forward during the league phase, so transfers can’t be continually saved to build up a large bank.
There are then two major squad resets: unlimited free transfers are available before the knockout phase play-offs and again before the round of 16.
| Stage | Free transfers |
|---|---|
| Before league phase | Unlimited |
| During league phase | 2 per Matchday |
| Before knockout play-offs | Unlimited |
| Before play-off second leg | 2 |
| Before round of 16 | Unlimited |
| Before round of 16 second leg | 3 |
| Before quarter-finals | 5 |
| Before quarter-final second leg | 3 |
| Before semi-finals | 5 |
| Before semi-final second leg | 3 |
| Before final | 5 |
Each transfer above your allowance costs four points, which is deducted from your overall score rather than the individual Matchday score.
Free transfers can’t be rolled once the knockout stage begins.
WILDCARD + LIMITLESS CHIPS
Managers have two chips available during the season:
| Wildcard | Limitless | |
|---|---|---|
| Uses | 1 | 1 |
| Unlimited transfers | Yes | Yes |
| Unlimited budget | No | Yes |
| New squad remains afterwards | Yes | No |
WILDCARD
The Wildcard allows unlimited free transfers while retaining the normal budget restrictions.
Unlike Limitless, this is a permanent squad overhaul. The players you bring in remain in your squad for subsequent Matchdays.
If you’ve already made transfers before activating the Wildcard, those moves will be cancelled, along with any points deductions they incurred.
LIMITLESS
Limitless removes both the transfer and budget restrictions for one Matchday.
You can therefore build a squad without worrying about player prices.
Once that Matchday ends, however, your squad returns to the one you owned before activating Limitless.
Any transfers made before activating Limitless are also cancelled, along with any points deductions they incurred
Neither chip can be played on Matchdays 1, 9 or 11, when managers already receive unlimited transfers. Each chip can only be used once.
HOW ARE POINTS SCORED?
Champions League Fantasy rewards many of the usual attacking and defensive actions, but there are several scoring categories that FPL managers won’t be accustomed to.
Most notably, every three balls recovered earns one point, while the official UEFA Player of the Match receives an additional three points.
| Action | Points |
|---|---|
| Appearance | 1 |
| Playing 60 minutes | 1 |
| Goal from outside the box | +1 |
| Assist | 3 |
| Every three balls recovered | 1 |
| Player of the Match | 3 |
| Winning a penalty* | 2 |
| Conceding a penalty* | -1 |
| Missing a penalty | -2 |
| Yellow card | -1 |
| Red card | -3 |
| Own goal | -2 |
*No points are awarded when the penalty is given for handball.
GOALKEEPERS
| Action | Points |
|---|---|
| Goal | 6 |
| Penalty save | 5 |
| Clean sheet | 4 |
| Every three saves | 1 |
| Every two goals conceded | -1 |
DEFENDERS
| Action | Points |
|---|---|
| Goal | 6 |
| Clean sheet | 4 |
| Every two goals conceded | -1 |
MIDFIELDERS
| Action | Points |
|---|---|
| Goal | 5 |
| Clean sheet | 1 |
FORWARDS
| Action | Points |
|---|---|
| Goal | 4 |
Players need to complete at least 60 minutes, excluding added time, to qualify for clean-sheet points.
Another important difference is the additional point awarded for goals scored from outside the box.
HOW DO ASSISTS WORK?
A player receives three points for an assist when their final intentional pass, cross, header or shot leads to a goal.
Assists can also be awarded following rebounds from the woodwork or an opposition player, while a small deflection doesn’t necessarily prevent an assist being given.
Players who win penalties don’t receive an assist. Instead, they earn two points for winning the spot-kick, unless it was awarded for handball.
Only one player can receive an assist for each goal.
WHEN ARE THE DEADLINES?
Your team locks when the first match of each Matchday kicks off.
| Matchday | Date |
|---|---|
| MD1 | Tuesday 8 September |
| MD2 | Tuesday 13 October |
| MD3 | Tuesday 20 October |
| MD4 | Tuesday 3 November |
| MD5 | Tuesday 24 November |
| MD6 | Tuesday 8 December |
| MD7 | Tuesday 19 January |
| MD8 | Wednesday 27 January |
| MD9 – play-offs, first leg | Tuesday 16 February |
| MD10 – play-offs, second leg | Tuesday 23 February |
| MD11 – round of 16, first leg | Tuesday 9 March |
| MD12 – round of 16, second leg | Tuesday 16 March |
| MD13 – quarter-finals, first leg | Tuesday 6 April |
| MD14 – quarter-finals, second leg | Tuesday 13 April |
| MD15 – semi-finals, first leg | Tuesday 27 April |
| MD16 – semi-finals, second leg | Tuesday 4 May |
| MD17 – final | Saturday 5 June |
UEFA recommends saving any changes before the first fixture begins. The rules also allow managers to wait for the first set of official line-ups before finalising their team, where timings permit.
CAN YOU START CHAMPIONS LEAGUE FANTASY LATE?
Yes.
You can create a team after the competition has started.
If you join between Matchdays, you’ll begin scoring from the next one.
There is even provision to join during an ongoing Matchday. For example, if you create your team after Tuesday’s matches have started, you can begin scoring from Wednesday’s fixtures within that same Matchday.
WHAT CAN YOU WIN?
There are prizes available for both overall performance and individual stages of the competition.
The overall winner receives a trip for two to the 2028 UEFA Champions League final, including flights and accommodation, as well as a PlayStation 5.
Second place earns a shirt from a club participating in UEFA competition plus EA FC 27, while third place receives an official Champions League match ball and a copy of Football Manager.
There are also prizes available throughout the season:
- The highest-scoring manager on every Matchday other than the final wins a PlayStation 5.
- The manager leading the world rankings at the end of the league phase wins a trip for two to Madrid for the 2027 Champions League final, including flights and accommodation, plus a PlayStation 5.
- The highest-scoring manager across the knockout phase wins a PlayStation 5.
That gives managers something to play for, even if challenging for the overall title becomes unrealistic later in the season.
