Allsvenskan Fantasy

Launch of Fantasy Allsvenskan for the 2020 season

Introduction

I’d like to start by offering a heartfelt welcome back to everyone who was with us last year, and to any and all newcomers, please do stick around and you’ll be in for a very interesting and fun ride! Once we get the engine running and the date for the race set that is…

First and foremost, this is as you’re all painfully aware of, incredibly strange and hard times. While it might seem trivial to get excited about the launch of a fantasy game based on the Swedish league that we’re not sure about how, or when it will start off – this is also a time where the need for a distraction is paramount and the time for tinkering is well, almost infinite.

Given that the Swedish football league “Allsvenskan” was planned to kick off at the start of April but now has been pushed up until June (at the very earliest), the makers of the Fantasy game around it where probably more than a bit unsure of how to handle the situation. In the end, while Swedes are urged to stay inside and not travel or meet up with people, it seems that we’ve been gifted a stay at home-present in the form of a Fantasy Allsvenskan launch!

What on earth is Fantasy Allsvenskan?

Allsvenskan is the top division in Sweden and it currently houses 16 teams. There have been a few different fantasy games around it but since the 2018 season, Fantasy Allsvenskan has the same interface and platform as Fantasy Premier League and Fantasy Eliteserien so any newcomers will feel right at home from the start. Before we get into the teams allow me to introduce you to the things that set Fantasy Allsvenskan apart and for me at least, makes it a particularly interesting game:

Bonus point system

There is quite a difference between the Fantasy Premier League, Fantasy Eliteserien and Fantasy Allsvenskan bonus point systems. While FPL is based on the (in)famous stat-based BPS that hands out 1-3 points to the players with the most BPS at the end of the game, Eliteserien goes for a “man in the stands” kind of approach but sticks with 1-3 bonus points. Allsvenskan, on the other hand, goes for a different approach. There are no limits to the number of bonus points within a single game, instead there is a maximum-limit per player that’s set at 2 bonus points for offensive contributions and 2 for defensive actions, which are calculated as follows:

Offensive bonus

  • 1 point for every 3 successful crosses (the ball reaches a teammate in the penalty box).
  • 1 point for every 3 key passes (pass that leads to a shot on target).
  • 1 point for every big chance created (like the rest, big chances are determined by Opta).

Defensive bonus

  • 1 point for every 6 cumulative clearances, blocks or interceptions.
  • 1 point for every 6 ball recoveries.

What this means in practice is that central defenders and defensive midfielders tend to rack up quite a bit of defensive bonus, while creative midfielders are rewarded for their offensive contributions even if the strikers fail to score the chance they’ve been so kindly served up on a plate. That’s not to say strikers are useless in Fantasy Allsvenskan, especially not the ones who take part in defensive work and have a creative streak in them. Overall the bonus point system feels quite refined and supplements the regular scoring system that focuses on goals, assists and clean sheets in a solid and balanced way.

Chips

The chips remain the same as last year with the tweak that “manager of the week” is now based on the points you would have had without the chip in play, a welcome change for those who lamented the fact it always seemed to be someone who played the powerful “Park the bus”-chip who came out on top.

Park the bus (Parkera bussen) – All defenders get double points. When playing this chip you are stripped of the ability to have a regular captain that gameweek. Absolutely massive in DGWs!

Attack! (Framåt!) – All forwards get double points. As above, no additional captain that GW.

Two captains (Två kaptener) – Both your captain and vice-captain gets double points.

Last year’s top three

Allsvenskan is very much a league where any team on their day can beat anyone (especially at home). There are however a couple of teams that tend to be at the top more often than not, and they look likely to challenge for the top three spots this year as well. These are the ones who finished top three last year:

Djurgården

The somewhat unexpected champions of last year, Djurgården built their title assault on an incredibly solid defence. That defence was a source of massive points all season, with the central defenders mopping up defensive bonus and both full-backs whipping in crosses and gathering offensive bonus points. Elliot Käck (6.0m) took a lot of set pieces and remains an attractive option this season, though ultra-attacking Aslak Fonn Witry (7.0m) might have been too highly-priced even though he did get 3 goals and 7 assists last season. There will be a huge question-mark around Djurgården’s ability to keep racking up the clean sheets though as the glue that arguably held it all together, Marcus Danielson, has left to play in the Chinese league. Keep an eye on Emir Kujovic (10.0m) who could be in for a huge season as the star striker now is fit again and without the competition from Muhamed Buya Turay.

Malmö

The “Manchester City” of Allsvenskan if you will, Malmö have a far better economy than all the other clubs after having some successful stints (by Swedish standards) in EL and CL. This has led to them building a very deep squad which unfortunately has meant a lot of rotation, something fantasy managers should be aware of. Malmö came second last season (one point behind Djurgården) after starting quite poorly and drawing too many games. It remains to be seen if new coach Jon Dahl Tomasson will rotate as much as Uwe Rösler did and who his favourites are, but players to watch could be Adi Nalic (7.5m), Sören Rieks (9.0m) and Anders Christiansen (10.0m).

Hammarby

Hammarby came third last season, one point behind Djurgården as well but slightly worse goal-difference than Malmö (not for lack of trying though). Hammarby were more than a bit suspect defensively (letting in 38 goals in 30 games, worst of the top seven) but they made up for it by going all-out attack and scoring an incredible 75 goals, setting a new league record. Coach Stefan Billborn mostly stuck with the same eleven which made a double or even treble up in attack viable at times, which might be harder this season though given their new prices. Alexander Kačaniklić (10.0m) and Aron Jóhannsson (9.0m) could be interesting picks while I’m slightly cautious regarding how Muamer Tankovic (11.0m), Darijan Bojanic (9.5m) and new recruit and BK Häcken legend Paulinho (10.5m) will perform in comparison to their respective price-tags.

The challengers

Most years there are (as in every league) teams that we expect to do well who do poorly and vice versa, but last season there was a pretty well defined top 8 and I largely expect them to keep performing well this season too. Especially AIK and IFK Norrköping look likely to give the others a hard time this season!

AIK

A surprisingly poor season last year by their standards, AIK finished fourth and the supporters were understandably frustrated not only by the results but also by the way they never quite seemed to click and roll over their opponents, even if they were largely dominant in the games. Before last season, they’ve finished 1st, 2nd, 2nd, 3rd and 3rd. Their recipe for success most of the time has been an incredible defence, which was still pretty good last year with only Djurgården (19) and Malmö (16) conceding fewer goals than AIK (24) last time around. Sebastian Larsson (9.0m) and Henok Goitom (9.5m) should remain good options in attack whilst defensively you might want to look at wingbacks Erick Otieno (5.5m) and Robert Lundström (5.5m), assuming the latter can stay fit.

IFK Norrköping

Norrköping had an amazing second half of the season which almost saw them ruin Djurgården’s title aspirations in the final game. They were superb at home and both defensively and in attack they really started to come together, ending up in fifth place. If they can build upon that, they could very much be in the conversation regarding a top-three finish. Goalkeeper Isak Pettersson (6.5m) got the third-highest points tally in the game and though he’s pricy, he still looks a solid bet. Defenders Lars Krogh Gersson (6.5m) and Rasmus Lauritsen (6.5m) were great last year, while midfielder Jonathan Levi (7.5m) could offer outstanding value!

BK Häcken, IFK Göteborg and IF Elfsborg

Placed 6th, 7th, and 8th respectively last year, these clubs could be in the mix for top spots as well. After struggling financially for a while, Göteborg in particular seem like they can push on even further this season. We’ll have more on all options in the build-up to the season but for now, I’d have a look at Peter Abrahamsson (6.5m), Hosam Aeish (8.5m), Giorgio Kharaishvili (10.0m) and Robin Söder (9.5m).

Pre-season coverage and FFS league

It’s a bit of a strange pre-season as I’m sure you can imagine but most teams did have some friendly games before it all got shut down, plus the group stage in the Swedish cup got played where some teams impressed more than others. We’ll have a selection of picks for every position but beyond that we’ll play it a bit by ear as no one is entirely certain of when this season will start (current estimate is sometime in June/July).

A general tip for success in Fantasy Allsvenskan is to try to always have a decent bench as suspensions (for every 3 yellow cards) and surprise injuries (there are no pre-game press conferences) means that it is quite common to need the bench to step up.

Link to the English signup-page is here and the code to the FFS League is v5ajyz.

Personally, I’m very happy that Fantasy Allsvenskan is back and I hope that the community can grow even more this season, when it eventually kicks off! If you want to chat about fantasy football either comment here below – or hit me up @FF_Meltens on Twitter!

36 Comments Post a Comment
  1. Rotation's Alter Ego
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • Has Moderation Rights
    • 12 Years
    3 years, 11 months ago

    It's back!

    Great to have you back writing Meltens (another big thank you!) and I'm looking forward to seeing how this season plays out.

    We love to see all the discussion about Allsvenskan so as always these articles will be reserved to be purely about that - flag anything posted here that is unrelated and we'll remove it.

    We also greatly encourage people writing some hot topics this season! There's lots to talk about with the game out now, so if there's anything you think is a major talking point, please flag it up to us. Unfortunately I'm not the most knowledgeable about this league so will be going off your recommendations and upvotes (though fortunately Geoff is pretty good at Allsvenskan Fantasy!).

    Good luck everyone, and I'll add again - the code for the FFS League is v5ajyz

    1. Meltens
      • Has Moderation Rights
      • 8 Years
      3 years, 11 months ago

      Cheers mate glad to be back! 🙂 Will hopefully be a great season once it kicks off!

      Just a minor heads up to the ones who arrived at this article early - make sure you're in the "FantasyFootballScout.co.uk" league and not the "Fantasy Football Scout" league (my bad). The article is now updated with the right league code.

  2. Mullered in Maenam
    • Fantasy Football Scout Member
    • 9 Years
    3 years, 11 months ago

    Hi Meltens

    Great to have you back and great to have Allsvenskan back, it was a pretty competitive FFS league last season. I ended up 308th OR, up from 409th OR the season before.

    Looking forward to it again.

    Cheers

    Johnny

    1. Meltens
      • Has Moderation Rights
      • 8 Years
      3 years, 11 months ago

      Thanks Johnny, think it'll be a cracking one this time around! Plenty of interesting fantasy options and even more teams that could be pushing for the title.

  3. Cpt Crunch Scott talent
    • 10 Years
    3 years, 11 months ago

    Hopefully we get an addition in August or whenever a new transfer window emerges.
    Zlatan in Hammarby would be great to see even for a Norrköping fan like myself.

    1. Meltens
      • Has Moderation Rights
      • 8 Years
      3 years, 11 months ago

      Norrköping looks primed for a good season though I think, all the good players still there no? With Levi coming in as well.
      Haha yeah Zlatan well we'll see, would be quite something indeed!

      1. Cpt Crunch Scott talent
        • 10 Years
        3 years, 11 months ago

        Nah, I’m always a sceptic but I’m now convinced we’re completely fooked.
        We’ve lost so many players and other than Levi not much has been added.
        If Haksabanovic leaves in June(not sure how long our loan agreement is) it’s gonna be a very difficult season.
        We can still field a decent starting xi but injuries or a full season in a short timeframe and we’re in big trouble.
        Youngsters need to break through big time.
        Thern back is good though.

        But as we don’t know how the season will be played much could happen.
        Let’s say we have to settle with 15 matches then anything could happen.

        1. Meltens
          • Has Moderation Rights
          • 8 Years
          3 years, 11 months ago

          Yeah I agree about squad depth but to be fair that's the situation with most Swedish clubs really, though perhaps a bit worse now then for you guys. https://www.hallandsposten.se/sport/hbk/haksabanovic-om-os%C3%A4kra-framtiden-jobbigt-1.26024144 seems Haksa's loan expires this summer but no one knows how West Ham feels about the situation, I can imagine they'd be okay with him sticking with Norrköping for one more season to develop before coming back. He was good but not quite good enough that they'd want to play him on a regular basis in England.

  4. First Allsvenskan Fantasy drafts
    Meltens
    • Has Moderation Rights
    • 8 Years
    3 years, 11 months ago

    First draft for Fantasy Allsvenskan, tear it to shreds! 😉

    Krogh Gerson - Käck - Otieno
    Kačaniklić - Rieks - Nalic - Levi
    Kujovic - Jóhannsson - Moro
    (Nilsson/4.0, Berg, Gojani, Eriksson Ibragic/4.0)

    How are your drafts coming along?

    1. Meltens
      • Has Moderation Rights
      • 8 Years
      3 years, 11 months ago

      Jansson as the starting keeper, though at times that is actually like having no one there xD

    2. Bob Sacamano
      • 5 Years
      3 years, 11 months ago

      Nice to see everyone back here! I was very excited to see the game being lunched last week, but almost instantly realized that about 95% of my planning are depending on fixtures, which makes it a little pointless at this stage. Hopefully I will get the excitement back when we know more about how/if the season will be played.

      Your team looks fine, with several players being in my first draft as well, which is a combination of my own selections and a few outopick.

      Hägg-Johansson
      Lundström - Käck - Gerson - Ahmedhodzic
      Kacaniklic - AC - Romario - Jake Larsson
      Karlsson - Paulinho

      4.0 - 4.0 - Gojan - Moro

      1. Meltens
        • Has Moderation Rights
        • 8 Years
        3 years, 11 months ago

        Yeah fixtures are completely up in the air so it's more of a general long term kind of thing, with room for moving around depending on an eventual pre-season and schedule. Ahmedhodzic seem to be quite popular, might have to have a deeper look at him! I also like Lundström but a bit worried about fitness and nailedness, otherwise I think he'd be in for me too. Romario bonus points darling + pens in there as well, nice!

        1. Bob Sacamano
          • 5 Years
          3 years, 11 months ago

          Yeah, hard to tell though with very few pre-season games played, and several more likely to be played before the season starts. I have my concerns about the nailedness of Lundström and Ahmedhodzic, but hopefully a few pre-season games will give more information. The selection of both Hägg-Johansson and Romario are based on the origianl schedule where Kalmar had an early DGW. They kept few clean sheets last season, and Romario lost pens to Fröling, so unless the schedule looks amazing they're both likely to go. Apparently Jake Larsson might have lost pens as well, so he's another uncertainty.

    3. Mullered in Maenam
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 9 Years
      3 years, 11 months ago

      I have similar to you Meltens and depending on further pre-season friendlies a couple of punts from the promoted teams but going heavier at the back with a solid midfield. A 4-4-2 and possibly rotating the cheap forwards if that works out once the fixtures are announced. Like Bob says, once the fixtures are announced we'll likely move for some big-hitters with perceived easier opening fixtures.

      Abrahamsson 6.5, (Svensson 4.0)

      Krogh Gerson 6.5, Lauritsen 6.5, Kack 6.0, Wernersson 6.0, (Lindner 4.5)

      Kacaniklic 10.0, Rieks 9.0, Nalic 7.5, Levi 7.5, (Gustavsson 4.5)

      Kujovic 10.0, Seljmani 6.0, (Moro 5.5)

      1. Meltens
        • Has Moderation Rights
        • 8 Years
        3 years, 11 months ago

        Very nice structure and I do love Abrahamsson, he was one of my best calls getting in last season 🙂
        Not sure how much rotation we should account for at the beginning (might be tight between the games possibly). If it's a lot of rotation I'd consider downgrading Lauritsen to a 5.5 and upgrading Lindner to a 5.5 as well, that's what I did though I'm admittedly not set on Otieno + Berg as that combo.

        Solid bench overall!

        1. Mullered in Maenam
          • Fantasy Football Scout Member
          • 9 Years
          3 years, 11 months ago

          Cheers and good point about how much time between games there will be, my thoughts were that the three subs would be fairly nailed for their respective teams but 2 x 5.5m defenders could well be a better way to go if the games come thick and fast. Mmmmmh, much to ponder.

          1. Meltens
            • Has Moderation Rights
            • 8 Years
            3 years, 11 months ago

            And unfortunately, way too much time ahead of us to ponder as well 🙂 It beats the "slow WC" in FPL at least.

            1. Mullered in Maenam
              • Fantasy Football Scout Member
              • 9 Years
              3 years, 11 months ago

              Yeah, not fussed about the slow wildcard thing, I am playing Ragabolly's Virtual FPL game, 7th out of 2004 after GW 1 and just four points off number one, so a bit chuffed about that. I've no work now and won't have probably for much of the rest of the year so any football distractions are most welcome.

      2. Bob Sacamano
        • 5 Years
        3 years, 11 months ago

        Looks nice! I really like the Norrköping doubble-up in defence. I always forget how to structure my team in Allsvenskan fantasy, I just never seem to remember that the biggest value is in defence and midfield. I currently got Karlsson and Paulinho up front, should probably reconcider that. Levi is a nice punt, and if Nalic gets gametime he looks like a decent option as well!

        1. Mullered in Maenam
          • Fantasy Football Scout Member
          • 9 Years
          3 years, 11 months ago

          Thanks Bob, I think there's a decent arguement for playing 5 at the back at certain points of the season, a 6.0m defender is far more likely to get bigger returns than a 6.0m forward. It would mean having a non-playing 4.5m forward on the bench but it's something I'll look at again once the fixture list comes out. Good luck for the season Bob.

  5. FPL Pillars
    • 7 Years
    3 years, 11 months ago

    I’ve not played last season.

    Came up with this, no idea if it’s good.

    Jansson
    Kack LKY

    1. FPL Pillars
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 11 months ago

      Jansson
      Kack LKG Ahmedhodvic Sandberg

      Tankovic Olsson Kacaniklic Haksabanovic

      Froling Kharaishvili

      Jonsson Moro Jansson Bjorkman

      1. Meltens
        • Has Moderation Rights
        • 8 Years
        3 years, 11 months ago

        Defence looks good though Hammarby unfortunately are a bit crap defensively, even if they're working on it. Sandberg is very involved but I'd actually consider Widgren if going with Hammarby defence, otherwise there will be some interesting 5.5m defenders about this season by the looks of it, we'll try to cover the main options going forward 🙂

        If he's fit when it kicks off - Erik Berg could be one to consider. Wingbacks from AIK Robert Lundström and Erik Otieno as well. As for the midfield Haksabanovic might be heading back to West Ham when his loan expires this summer so that's something to keep an eye on. Kharaishvili is superb in general, was great last season and the on before!

  6. Big_Jo
    • 3 Years
    3 years, 11 months ago

    Any thoughts on Hammarby signing Abbe Khalili? Think he looks very interesting at 7.5m.

    1. Meltens
      • Has Moderation Rights
      • 8 Years
      3 years, 11 months ago

      I'd have to see him play a bit more I think, not sure where he's going to be playing and how regular gametime we're looking at. Starting to get a bit of competition for starting spots! If he's a semi-regular he could be great value indeed 🙂

  7. Cpt Crunch Scott talent
    • 10 Years
    3 years, 11 months ago

    Swedish FA today announced that they plan to start allsvenskan on June the 14 if possible.
    So, no rush.

    1. Meltens
      • Has Moderation Rights
      • 8 Years
      3 years, 11 months ago

      Yeah I saw that, plenty of time for tinkering 😉
      We’ll see if they can keep to that timeframe or not, saw that they’d also like to have the Swedish cup finished before that.

  8. Cpt Crunch Scott talent
    • 10 Years
    3 years, 11 months ago

    Hammarby and Frej(3rd tier club) will tomorrow divide into 3 teams and play behind closed doors.
    A 3man attack will be Zlatan and both Khalili’s.

  9. Meltens
    • Has Moderation Rights
    • 8 Years
    3 years, 10 months ago

    Allsvenskan officially coming back 14th of June! https://www.svt.se/sport/corona-och-idrott/bekraftat-klartecken-for-tavlingsidrott
    Positional articles incoming with goalkeepers the first topic to be covered!

    1. GertJan
      • 7 Years
      3 years, 10 months ago

      No Euro 2020, but it's gonna be a busy summer after all...

      Looking forward to the articles! 🙂

      1. Meltens
        • Has Moderation Rights
        • 8 Years
        3 years, 10 months ago

        It most certainly is 🙂

        GKs coming out later today most likely!

        1. Mullered in Maenam
          • Fantasy Football Scout Member
          • 9 Years
          3 years, 10 months ago

          Good to see you back Meltens, I was playing around with my squad today based solely on the first three fixtures and Dahlin was the choice for me for the first three. Once all the fixtures are known that may change but that's how I'd go if WC in GW 4.

          1. Meltens
            • Has Moderation Rights
            • 8 Years
            3 years, 10 months ago

            Replied below, I’m out of FFS form haha

  10. Meltens
    • Has Moderation Rights
    • 8 Years
    3 years, 10 months ago

    You too Johnny! 🙂

    Yeah Dahlin is solid though he’s not that impressive stats-wise, pretty dependant on CS. I’m leaning towards going slightly cheeper for the GK spot and maybe switching to a more premium later on!

    1. Mullered in Maenam
      • Fantasy Football Scout Member
      • 9 Years
      3 years, 10 months ago

      Yep, at the same price Eric Larsson could be better value and I'm keen on four at the back but maybe I'll look at five at the back to start, I have to do something a little different to gain an edge on you top lads! In that case I'd probably be looking at a keeper from one of the promoted clubs so I'll look forward to your keepers article. I always like a bargain from promoted teams so I've been having at look at them but it's mostly guesswork based on stats from a lower division.

      1. Meltens
        • Has Moderation Rights
        • 8 Years
        3 years, 10 months ago

        Defenders do tend to get quite a bit of points so going heavy there is likely a solid choice! I think I’ll start out with either a 3-4-3 or a 4-3-3, I like the premium strikers available this year around the 9-10m mark.
        Will be hard to know exactly how teams will lineup though given they’re not going to get any more pre-season games before the 14th of June but I guess an early WC could sort out any mistakes in that departement.