FPL is BACK: 2026/27 FPL Preseason Launch

The 2026/27 FPL Season has arrived, which means our preseason podathon begins. Today we're just reacting to the game being out and some prices, but starting Monday, we'll be back with our first proper preseason episode.

Get 25% off your first year when you pay annually for our Patreon! Plus you get ad-free episodes / Discord access / prize league / more episodes / etc… https://www.patreon.com/1069944/join

Chapters:

00:00:00 Welcome Back, FPL Is Back: Intro and Patreon Admin

00:04:43 A New Season Brings About New Treats from the Administrators of the Official FPL Website and Game: Rules Changes, Bonus Points Changes, Positional Changes

00:12:29 General Thoughts on the Pricing: Buy Buy Buy

00:17:49 We Always Start with Goalkeeper and Let's Not Break That Tradition: Not a Lot of 4.5s to Choose From

00:24:21 Starting Our Chat with the Arsenal: Gab's Too Expensive but There Is Value Elsewhere

00:32:00 Aston Villa: Is There Anything You Like? We Can't Do All 20 Teams but We Have to Do Something

00:34:41 Bournemouth: New Manager and a Price Hike

00:36:36 Some Interest in Brentford and the Bees: Except Thiago

00:39:28 Brighton Are Always Interesting but Their Squad Is Humungous and They Have European Fixtures to Navigate

00:42:58 Chelsea Have a Manager Now and No European Fixtures

00:48:30 We Can't Keep Going Alphabetically, We Have to Start Jumping Around to Different Players and Teams: Sarr, MGW and Forest Guys, Jacquet and Some Liverpool Guys, Man City Guys, Solanke, Osula, Harvey Barnes, Šeško and Cunha, Ndiaye

01:06:09 There Are Practically No Easy Fixture Runs

01:11:06 The Schedule for Our Preseason: Fireside Chats to Be Scheduled

FML FPL is supported by our Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/FMLFPL

FML FPL is a Fantasy Premier League podcast hosted by Alon and Walsh, two veteran FPL managers riding the highs and lows of every Gameweek. Expect brutally honest reactions, fantasy football advice you probably shouldn’t follow, and full Gameweek therapy.

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Find the episode at:

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/fpl-is-back-2026-27-fpl-preseason-launch/id1024068765?i=1000778160164

World Cup 2026 Semis and Final: A Closed Loop System

Our final World Cup pod is short and sweet, and we have FPL launch around the corner.

Chapters:

00:00:00 Intro and Future Planning: When Will They Launch FPL?

00:01:49 Team FML FPL: Quarterfinal Clean Sheet Shielding to a Million Points

00:03:30 Attacking the Third Place Match: The Deadline for the Final Is Not the Final

00:08:04 Questions from Discord: All-In or Diversifying This Round, Max Cap and Clean Sheet Shield, Messi or Kane

00:21:05 What Are We Doing with Our Team: Wait for the Lineups, Probably Have to Sell Yamal for Cash, TBD the Rest

World Cup 2026 QF: Our Team Has Gone Airplane Mode

Well, the round of death for Fantasy World Cup has arrived, and we do not have enough free transfers to deal with it.

Chapters:

00:00:00 Intro and How We Did in the Round of 16: The Airplanes Have Descended into Team FML FPL

00:03:18 Our Team's Situation: How and When to Use the Clean Sheet Shield

00:08:46 Starting with Questions from Discord: Nyland, USA vs Belgium "Analysis," Messi, Quarterfinal GKs, 15 Playing Players, and Kane vs Haaland

00:27:58 Briefly Going Through the Other Matches We Haven't Talked About Yet, Starting with France vs Morocco

00:30:21 Spain vs Belgium: What's Up with Lamine Yamal?

00:35:11 Awful Argentina vs Classic Switzerland

Find the episode at:

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/world-cup-2026-qf-our-team-has-gone-airplane-mode/id1024068765?i=1000775916568

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/3ApQGmYtj8KMw5XIAyVds6?si=kVyPMRyUR6-l0_Iwfkj18g

YouTube: https://youtu.be/lgdTNUgGNAY

All Links: https://linktr.ee/fmlfpl

World Cup 2026 R16: Probably the Last Round That the Fantasy Game Is Still Fun

Working around potential eliminations feels like a minefield from here on out, but we have four transfers to use.

Chapters:

00:00:00 Intro and How We’re Doing in the Round of 32 So Far: Qualification Bonus Is So Stupid

00:05:26 The Balogun Situation: Cheap Forward Options

00:09:10 What Are We Gonna Do: Reverse Engineering Our Transfers

00:13:40 Canada vs Morocco: Morocco Are All Good Picks

00:17:14 Heavy on France and Heavy on Argentina Is Logical

00:20:48 Clean Sheet Chip Talk: When Is the Best Time to Play It and Why

00:28:04 Germany, by the Way: Klopp In?

00:30:58 Netherlands: Complete Joke, Bye Koeman

00:32:03 Brazil vs Norway and England vs Mexico: Jude Red Incoming

00:38:30 Portugal vs Spain and USA vs Belgium: Portugal Stink and USA Without Balogun

World Cup 2026 R32: Free Wildcard for the Knockouts

Extremely quick turnaround to the knockout stage, and we're all on a free wildcard, so we banged out an episode.

Find the episode at:

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/world-cup-2026-r32-free-wildcard-for-the-knockouts/id1024068765?i=1000774527004

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/3Rw5teBV0DqwEIdNMVqEtN?si=v_MBj2J6TnWm-rews8dP7w

World Cup 2026 MD3: A Wildcard Hullabaloo

We're halfway through a match and halfway through a matchday, but it's kind of the only time we could pod before Walsh goes on vacation, so here we are vibing with a great tournament so far.

Join the FML FPL World Cup Fantasy league here: https://play.fifa.com/fantasy/join-league/WQRK6PBA

We're also running a discount from now until the start of the World Cup: 25% off your first month: https://www.patreon.com/1069944/join

Chapters:

00:00:00 Top Chef to Kick Off Our World Cup Fiesta: Top Tier Tear Play

00:02:18 Halfway Through MD1 Recap: This Is Where Team FML FPL Is At

00:10:41 Starting with Questions from Discord: Fun Teams, Triple Defenses, Japan Differentials, and Transfer Targets

00:19:10 Back to Team Alon and Walsh: Who Replaces Montes, Which Attacker Is Out, and Are We Definitely Wildcarding in MD3

00:24:07 Germany Thrashing: Football Terrorist Leroy Sane

00:27:54 Brazil Lineup and Performance: Weird

ok here’s the MD1 alon+walsh combo play for vibes team… lotta scouting bonusers lotta action lotta fun WORLD CUP HERE WE GO BABY

Fireside Chat with Anthony Dabbundo

Alon chats again with Anthony Dabbundo and they go group by group through the 2026 World Cup, picking out winners, dark horses, teams they like, teams they dislike, and potential Fantasy World Cup angles.

Follow Anthony here: https://x.com/AnthonyDabbundo

And check out his work for The Ringer here: https://www.theringer.com/creator/anthony-dabbundo

Chapters:

00:00:00 Intro to Anthony and Gambling Disclaimer

00:03:00 World Cup Bets with the Most Value and World Cup Bets with the Most Fun

00:07:53 Starting with the Groups and Their Situations

00:10:24 Group A: Mexico, Czechia, South Korea, and South Africa

00:14:13 Group B: Switzerland, Canada, Bosnia, and Qatar

00:17:52 Group C: Brazil, Morocco, Scotland, and Haiti

00:26:01 Group E: Germany, Ecuador, Ivory Coast, and Curaçao

00:33:41 Group F: Netherlands, Japan, Sweden, and Tunisia

00:37:59 Group G: Belgium, Egypt, Iran, and New Zealand

00:40:53 Group H: Spain, Uruguay, Saudi Arabia, and Cape Verde

00:43:13 Group I: France, Norway, Senegal, and Iraq

00:49:31 Group J: Argentina, Austria, Algeria, and Jordan

00:52:41 Group K: Portugal, Colombia, Congo, and Uzbekistan

00:57:20 Group L: England, Croatia, Ghana, and Panama

World Cup 2026 MD1: Building Team Alon & Walsh

Three days until go time!!!

We sorta tried to keep things relatively on topic, but in reality we're completely all over the place, mostly focused on our combined fantasy team.

World Cup Fantasy is live! Join the FML FPL league here: https://play.fifa.com/fantasy/join-league/WQRK6PBA

We're also running a discount from now until the start of the World Cup: 25% off your first month: https://www.patreon.com/1069944/join

Chapters:

00:00:00 Vacation Brain: We're Three Days Away from MD1, What the Hell

00:03:31 Questions from Discord Are the Launch Pads, but We Talk About Everything: Goalkeepers, Highest Scoring Teams, Chip Strategy, and Much More

World Cup 2026: Welcome to World Cup Fantasy

Whether you're PFPing (playing for points) or PFVing (playing for vibes), it's time to dive headfirst into World Cup Fantasy.

World Cup Fantasy is live! Join the FML FPL league here: https://play.fifa.com/fantasy/join-league/WQRK6PBA

We're also running a discount from now until the start of the World Cup: 25% off your first month: https://www.patreon.com/1069944/join

Chapters:

00:00:00 New USA-Style World Cup Theme Music and Welcome to World Cup Fantasy

00:01:01 World Cup Fantasy Rules and Our Interpretations: Scouting Bonus for the Win

00:20:27 Groups, Fixtures, Favorable Matchups, and Scouting Bonus Targets

00:27:18 Premium Picks and Top Teams: Brazil's Vini and Raphinha, Spain and Yamal, and Many More

00:31:54 More Players and Teams We Love, More Players and Teams We Hate, and Early Picks (Subject to Change)

Find the episode at:

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/world-cup-2026-welcome-to-world-cup-fantasy/id1024068765?i=1000770673165

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/7sBmII0CAoleOR3UvjuwJZ?si=XblBRX2zQ6uH_3PTwHN9oA

YouTube: https://youtu.be/2-e8sBo7nd8

All Links: https://linktr.ee/fmlfpl

Post-mortem: Our 25/26 FPL Season Autopsy

We’re not good FPL players and we’re not having fun, so something has gone very wrong. Let’s break it down.

World Cup Fantasy is live! Join the FML FPL league here: https://play.fifa.com/fantasy/join-league/WQRK6PBA

Or just use the code: WQRK6PBA

We’re also running a discount from now until the start of the World Cup: 25% off your first month:

https://www.patreon.com/cw/FMLFPL/join

Alon will be on The FPL Last Resort post-mortem episode on Monday:

Chapters:

00:00:00 Admin Stuff: Cup Winner, Mug Winners, World Cup Pods, and a Discount

00:03:01 Very Quick GW38 Debrief: Walsh Transferred In Someone Who Didn't Play and Alon Saved His Transfer for Next Season

00:05:38 The Forgotten GW1 Bandwagon: Reijnders and Future GW1 Punts

00:16:10 The Timing of Holding Too Long or Too Short: Bad Process

00:26:07 Are the DefCons in the Room with Us Now: Use Transfers on Midfielders and Forwards Instead

00:51:08 Capping Palmer and Capping Gyok: Pay More Attention

00:52:55 What Is the Purpose of Playing FPL and What Is the Goal of Playing FPL

01:05:48 Our Benches and Our Autosubs: Not Good

01:10:37 FPL Burnout

01:15:55 The Joao Pedro Story: Evolving Our Evaluations and the Moving Target of "Nailed Players"

01:20:47 Bench Boost GW1

01:23:22 Liverpool and Slot: Bad Management and Injuries

01:29:03 How to Deal with New Rule Changes: They Will Be Broken

01:33:54 Nerfing Pen Takers

01:40:21 Rapid Fire Notes and Things to Chew On: MGW, Teams In and Out of Europe, and Carl Rushworth

Find the episode at:

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/post-mortem-our-25-26-fpl-season-autopsy/id1024068765?i=1000770112065

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/56gA72VPers6qDjTDY65bh?si=nnJNhtkSQ5iZlU-swD-fJg

YouTube isn't up yet cuz the video is taking forever to render so im just posting now

All Links: https://linktr.ee/fmlfpl

GW38: Last Normal Pod of the Season

We talk some stuff in what looks like a bit of a meh GW38 for a meh FPL season.

Chapters:

00:00:00 Admin Stuff: Upcoming Schedule for This Week and Next, and Yes, We Will Be Doing Regular Fantasy World Cup Pods

00:01:25 GW37 Recap: Captain Gyok on the Bench Is a Fun Way to End the Season

00:06:35 Managerial Merry-Go-Round: Mostly Getting Us Excited for Next Season

00:16:00 Arsenal and City in FPL: Bad Picks

00:22:22 GW38 on Hard Mode: How Many Teams Will Play Starters and Have Something to Play For

00:26:21 Some Free Hit Picks

00:30:58 One Lifestyle Question Before We Go

walsh: saving

GW37: Forget About FPL and Let’s Lifestyle

A little FPL as a treat, and then we get to business (lifestyle questions).

Chapters:

00:00:00 GW36 Recap: Triple Captain O’Reilly, So Far Not That Good

00:06:15 The Arsenal: Who to Pick and Why to Pick Them

00:11:51 A Potpourri of Other FPL Questions: Beach Teams, Liverpool and Slot, FPL Picks, and More

00:27:50 The Pod Really Begins Here with a Lifestyle Bonanza

00:40:48 GW37 Schedule

walsh using all five free transfers: palmer, ladro, pisshair, tav, and senesi OUT for benny blanco, sarr, hinsh, saka, and gyok IN

alon: scott to hinsh

GW36: A Fake Double Gameweek and a Whole Bunch of Bullshit

Blahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

Too many options and too few options, and plenty of time to get it wrong.

Chapters:

00:00:00 GW35 Recap: Pole Calmer on the List

00:11:40 Allegedly There Is a Double Gameweek: Crystal Palace Picks

00:16:20 Manchester City Actually Have a Double Gameweek: Who Are We Backing

00:20:45 Ndiaye Frustration Through the Roof, Throw in Minteh Too

00:29:54 Delaying Arsenal Picks and Questions Until After the Champions League Second Leg

00:32:24 Players Walsh Has His Eyes on for His Five Free Transfer Bonanza

00:37:15 Ending on Some Lifestyle Questions and Wrapping Up

Thumbnail and GIF by Cole: @ilovemonsters on Twitter and @colelovemonsters on Instagram

Find the episode at:

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/gw36-a-fake-double-gameweek-and-a-whole-bunch-of-b-t/id1024068765?i=1000766178979

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/4IZJWd12PFyMs8nitrt2Sj?si=Q_qIbqTMRKa4pM0g60HwvA

YouTube: https://youtu.be/8R8deTnGn6o