How to Play Champions League Fantasy Football 2025/26

By Fantasy Football Pundit · 5 September 2021

Much like FPL, the Champions League has its own fantasy game. It is often called UCL Fantasy.

Unsurprisingly, there are some notable differences between the two, in both the format and how points are scored.

What is UCL Fantasy?

As the name suggests, UCL Fantasy is fantasy football for the Champions League.

It is similar to the most famous fantasy game, the Fantasy Premier League.

You select a squad of 15 players, of which you choose 11 to play. Those players score points based on various in-match events. We will discuss the specific scoring below.

Teams can be created on the official UEFA Champions League fantasy page.

Much like FPL, you are given a 100 million budget to fill your squad with. That budget rises to 105 million when the knockout stages begin.

Players' prices differ based on their perceived ability to get your team points.

Squads can comprise a maximum of three players from any team. However, this does increase as the final approaches:

League phase: Maximum of 3 players
Knockout round play-offs: Maximum of 4 players
Last 16: Maximum of 4 players
Quarter-finals: Maximum of 5 players
Semi-finals: Maximum of 6 players
Final: Maximum of 8 players

The Difference Between FPL and UCL Fantasy

There are more similarities than not. The main difference comes in the nature of the competition itself.

This is because there are far fewer fixtures in the Champions League than in a Premier League season. The competition is divided into 17 matchdays, with league phase games on MD1 to MD8.

This makes each matchday and fixture even more critical.

It seems that UEFA has noted this and is, as a result, more flexible with changes during a Matchday.

Conversely, when a Gameweek deadline has passed, teams in Fantasy Premier League cannot be changed.

This is where arguably the most significant difference comes into play - manual substitutions. You can make substitutions while you can't transfer in the middle of a matchday.

A Matchday occurs over three days, at least in the league phase.

So, if a player from Tuesday doesn't perform, you can substitute them for another who plays on Wednesday and even Thursday.

The same applies to captaincy: If your captain doesn't perform on Tuesday, you can give the armband to another on Wednesday (and Thursday).

Making these manual substitutions and maximizing your captain opportunities is absolutely essential for a successful season in UCL Fantasy.

Without fail, any player you have playing on a Tuesday should be in your starting 11. Your captain's armband should also be given to a Tuesday player so you can switch if necessary.

What Chips Are There in UCL Fantasy?

You are given two chips in UCL Fantasy: 'Wildcard' and 'Limitless Wildcard'.

The Wildcard works precisely as it does in FPL. Between any Matchday, you can make unlimited transfers to your team, which remain once that matchday concludes.

It is also important to note you can make unlimited changes following the league phase and knockout round play-offs anyway. So, use your Wildcard wisely!

The Limitless is something unique to Champions League fantasy. It works a little like a Wildcard but with two key differences:

You have an unlimited budget
Changes only apply to that one matchday

That means you can select players like De Bruyne, Haaland, Mbappe, and Vinicus Jr without worrying about their expensive price tags.

It is best to use this when there are a lot of advantageous fixtures to make the most of.

Once that matchday is completed, your team will revert to what it was before the Limitless was used. Think of it as a one-week Wildcard with no budget constraints.

How to Score Points in UCL Fantasy

Nothing is more important than points in UCL Fantasy, and any other fantasy game. After all, it is the points that determine the winning manager.

A complete list of point-scoring actions can be found on the Champions League fantasy football rules page.

Mostly, these are the same as FPL. Below are the point-scoring actions that are different between FPL and UCL Fantasy:

Point-scoring Action	FPL	UCL Fantasy
Goal from outside the box	N/A	1 point
Every 3 balls recovered	N/A	1 point
Player of the Match award*	N/A	3 points
Winning penalty**	N/A	2 points
Conceding penalty	N/A	-1 point

*Fantasy Premier League uses the bonus points system as an alternative. Players get 3, 2 or 1 bonus points based on their BPS score

**In FPL, if a penalty is scored, the player who won the penalty will get the assist

This guide should put you in good stead for UCL Fantasy.