Guide · Fact · FPL
How FPL auto-subs work
The short answer
If a player in your starting eleven does not play in the Gameweek, the official game replaces him with a player from your bench who did. It goes through your bench in the order you set, and it skips any swap that would break the formation rules. This happens once, at the end of the Gameweek.
What counts as playing
A player has played if he appeared on the pitch, for any length of time, or was shown a yellow or red card.
So a player who comes on in the 90th minute has played. He keeps his place in your team with his one point, and nobody comes off your bench for him.
The order
- Goalkeeper: if your goalkeeper does not play, your substitute goalkeeper replaces him, if he played. A goalkeeper is never replaced by an outfield player.
- Outfield players: each one who does not play is replaced by the first outfield player on your bench who played and whose arrival keeps the formation legal.
The order of your bench is yours to set before the deadline. The first outfield player on it is tried first.
The formation rule
Your team must always have one goalkeeper, at least three defenders and at least one forward.
An example. You start three defenders and one of them does not play. The first player on your bench is a midfielder who played. He cannot come in, because that would leave you with two defenders. The game moves on to the next player on your bench, and brings in the first defender who played.
The captain
- If your captain plays no minutes in the Gameweek, your vice-captain's score is doubled instead.
- If neither plays any minutes, nobody's score is doubled.
A captain who plays one minute is still your captain.
Three things that catch people out
- The late cameo. One minute on the pitch counts as playing. The swap you were hoping for does not happen.
- The timing. Substitutions are made at the end of the Gameweek. Your total during the weekend does not include them.
- The bench order. A high-scoring player placed third on your bench only comes in if the two before him cannot.
See it during the Gameweek
FPL Tilt's Live page works out the substitutions and the captaincy as they stand, and shows your mini-league table with them included. They are marked as a projection until the official game applies them.
Rules as published by the official game for 2026/27, read on 11 October 2026.