What Is FFP Compliance Checked? Fantasy Football Rules

FFP compliance checked means running the hard squad rules before a fantasy deadline: 15 players, 11 starters, no more than three from one club, and a total cost inside the £100.0m budget. If any of those limits fail, the team is not legal and will not score. The rest of the game, from captain bonuses to transfer hits, only starts after that check.

The mechanism

The first layer of the check is squad size and budget. A fantasy squad has exactly 15 players. From those 15, you must name 11 starters. The total figure attached to the 15 players cannot go above £100.0m. Finally, the club filter is strict: you cannot hold more than three players from the same Premier League club. These four limits are checked together, not one after the other.

Once the 11 starters are set, the FPL scoring system applies a separate set of rules that a compliant squad must be ready for. A goal is worth 6 for a goalkeeper or defender, 5 for a midfielder, and 4 for a forward. An assist is worth 3. A clean sheet is worth 4 for a goalkeeper or defender, but only 1 for a midfielder. A player who appears in a match earns 1 point if he plays under 60 minutes, and 2 points if he reaches the 60-minute mark. The top three bonus scorers in the match receive 3, 2, and 1 points. A yellow card costs -1, a red card costs -3, an own goal costs -2, and a penalty miss costs -2. Goalkeepers collect 1 point for every three saves and 5 points for saving a penalty. Defenders and goalkeepers lose 1 point for every two goals their team concedes. The captain's score is doubled, so naming the armband is part of the decision on the 11 starters.

A transfer also has to fit the mechanism. The game gives a free allowance, and any transfer beyond that allowance costs -4 points. That cost is taken off the weekly score before the new player's points are added. The compliance check makes sure the squad still conforms after the transfer, so a move that takes you over the three-player club limit, or over the £100.0m budget, cannot be part of a compliant squad.

History/evolution

The fantasy rules are built on a real league structure. The Premier League was founded on 20 February 1992, when First Division clubs broke away to negotiate their own broadcast deals. The first season was 1992/93 with 22 clubs. That was reduced to 20 in 1995/96, and it has stayed at 20 since then. In a 20-club league, each club plays 38 matches, home and away, and the whole season produces 380 matches.

The league format is also tied to the promotion and relegation system. Three points are awarded for a win and one for a draw. The bottom three are relegated to the Championship. Three clubs come up from the Championship, two automatically and one through the play-off. That means the pool of clubs available to a fantasy squad changes every summer, even though the squad limit stays at 15.

The real Premier League has its own squad compliance rule. A club can name a 25-player squad list for players over 21, and at least 8 of those players must be homegrown. A homegrown player is defined as one trained in England or Wales for three years before turning 21. Under-21 players do not count against the 25. This rule is separate from the fantasy game, but it shows how the league already treats compliance as a serious part of squad building. Substitutions also have a strict structure: five substitutes per match, made in a maximum of three windows plus half-time.

Edge cases

The most common edge cases are the ones that happen after the deadline, when a squad looks compliant but small details change the score. A defender who concedes one goal loses nothing, but conceding two goals costs -1. A goalkeeper who makes a penalty save earns 5, but a penalty miss costs -2. The difference between 59 and 60 minutes is exactly 1 point, because the appearance points go from 1 to 2 at 60 minutes.

League edge cases affect the season too. If teams finish level, the tiebreaker order is points, goal difference, goals scored, then head-to-head record. If the level position decides the title, relegation, or European qualification, a play-off at a neutral venue may be used. European qualification follows a typical structure: the top four go to the Champions League league phase, the fifth team and the FA Cup winner go to the Europa League, and the League Cup winner goes to the Conference League play-off. Additional Champions League places can be earned through UEFA coefficient performance, and cup winners who have already qualified via league position pass the place down. These rules decide which clubs play in Europe and how the fixture list is shaped, which is why a fantasy manager needs to keep an eye on them even though they are not part of the £100.0m budget.

Another edge case is the homegrown rule. It matters for real clubs, not the fantasy game, because a club that does not fill the homegrown quota has to leave squad places empty. For fantasy, the equivalent is the three-player club cap. You cannot compare two players from the same club and simply add both if you already have three. One has to be dropped before the rest of the squad can pass the check.

Key takeaways

• An FFP compliance checked squad must have 15 players, 11 starters, a £100.0m budget, and no more than three players from one club.
• Goal scoring in fantasy is tiered: 6 for a goalkeeper or defender, 5 for a midfielder, 4 for a forward, with an assist worth 3.
• The real Premier League uses a 25-player squad list for players over 21, with at least 8 homegrown players trained in England or Wales for three years before turning 21.
• The league has 20 clubs, 38 matches per club, and 380 matches per season after dropping from 22 clubs in 1995/96.
• A transfer beyond the free allowance costs -4, while the captain's score is doubled.

FAQ

What are the FFP compliance checked rules?

The main rules are 15 players, 11 starters, a £100.0m budget, and a maximum of three players from the same club. If any of those limits are broken, the squad cannot be submitted.

How many points is a clean sheet worth?

A clean sheet is worth 4 for a goalkeeper or defender and 1 for a midfielder. A goalkeeper also collects points for saves and can earn 5 for saving a penalty.

What counts as homegrown?

A homegrown player is trained in England or Wales for three years before turning 21. A real Premier League squad list can have 25 players over 21, but at least 8 must meet that homegrown test. Under-21 players do not count against the 25.

What happens if a transfer takes a squad over the budget?

The game blocks the transfer before it is confirmed. Any transfer beyond the free allowance costs -4 points, so the squad has to stay compliant at the moment the move is made.