The changes to the Bonus Points System (BPS) ruffled a few feathers during Gameweek 1.
It’s not just the rule tweaks but also the delayed adjustments. On Monday night, for example, Josko Gvardiol (£5.5m) was suddenly awarded one bonus point having previously been on zero.
Ahead of the start of the season, we looked at who the potential beneficiaries could be.
Now, with Gameweek 1 finally wrapped up, we can see who the early winners and losers are this season.
HOW DOES THE BONUS POINTS SYSTEM WORK?
The BPS utilises a range of statistics supplied by Opta, who capture actions on the pitch to create a performance score for every player.
These actions range from scoring a goal, assisting and keeping a clean sheet to successful dribbles, recoveries and pass completion.
You can read more about these actions here.
The players with the top three BPS scores in a given match receive FPL bonus points – three points to the highest-scoring player, two to the second and one to the third.
WHAT ARE THE BONUS POINTS SYSTEM CHANGES IN 2024/25?
The adjustments to the BPS for 2024/25 are as follows:
| Action | BPS score in 2023/24 | BPS score in 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|
| Goalkeeper saving a penalty | 15 | 9 |
| Goalkeepers/defenders conceding a goal | N/A | -4 |
| Goalline clearance | N/A | 3 |
| Foul won | N/A | 1 |
| Shot on target | N/A | 2 |
WHY WERE THE BONUS POINTS CHANGED SO LATE?
FPL managers have grown accustomed to seeing their player points locked in an hour after the final match on any given calendar day. But this season, that will no longer be the case.
Now, all points are only final approximately one hour after the last match of the Gameweek. In the case of Gameweek 1, that was Leicester City v Tottenham Hotspur.
That means all Fantasy points, even from games on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, were subject to change until this point.
The main issue this week was that the new BPS actions (shots on target, fouls won, goal concessions etc) weren’t added ‘live’ to the bonus scores you see on the FPL site. So, very belatedly, once these new scoring actions were processed, we witnessed players leapfrogging others into the podium places.
But even aside from that, there were adjustments to the other underlying actions. Gvardiol, for instance, didn’t have any shots on target, win any fouls or clear any balls off the line.
So, Opta must have belatedly credited him with an extra dribble, recovery or CBI (clearance, block and interceptions) in order for him to draw level with Ederson (£5.5m).
HOW THE NEW BONUS POINTS SYSTEM AFFECTED GAMEWEEK 1
