Bundesliga Fantasy is back for the 21/22 season albeit with little to no changes except for the design but an exciting season of the elite division of German football awaits us and with less than 20 days left for the start, we look at how to play the game including rules and some tips to help you get started.
Fantasy Bundesliga Rules
In Fantasy Bundesliga, you will have a squad of 15 players in your team with three free transfers each week to replace any player in your squad with a player who plays in the same position within the budget constraints. You cannot take any hits to get additional players and there are no chips or powerups.
Breakdown of your 15 man squad:
- 2 Goalkeepers
- 5 Defenders
- 5 Midfielders
- 3 Forwards
You will have a purse of 150 million to purchase players from and there is no limit on the number of players that you can get from a single team.
Unlimited transfer periods
First international break: 30 August-11 September
Second international break: 4 October-15 October
Third international break: 8 November-19 November
Winter transfer window: 20 December-7 January
Fourth international break: 21 March-1 April
Tip: There is an early game on Friday for almost every week so you can try and capitalize on it by getting players from the game that you can star.
Formations
For each gameweek, you must have one starting keeper and 10 outfield players. You can choose any formation, as long as you’ve picked one goalkeeper, at least three defenders, at least three midfielders and at least one forward in your starting XI. Formations can also be changed midweek as you make substitutions and bring in players off the bench. The valid formations in the game are:
- 3-4-3
- 3-5-2
- 4-4-2
- 4-5-1
- 5-3-2
- 5-4-1
Tip: It is recommended to confirm your team at least 5 minutes before the deadline because there have been instances of teams not saving with 2-3 minutes left.
Price Changes
The player pricing will fluctuate according to the performance of each player in comparison to the positional average. The positional average is the average scores of all players in the same position like forward, midield, etc, who played in the matchday.
From the first matchday onwards, an average score will be calculated for every player in each position every week. If a player scores above or below the average points of his counterparts with the same position, his price will rise or fall accordingly. There will only be a price change for a player if he plays a minimum of 70 minutes in the respective week.
Price Increases:
400,000 – 10 or more points above the positional average300,000 – 6 to 9 points above the positional average
200,000 – 3 to 5 points above the positional average
No Change – 0 to 2 points above the positional average
300,000 – winning the official Bundesliga Player of the Month award
100,000 – winner of an “in-form card” in the official “Team of the Week” in FIFA
Price Decreases:
No Change – 0 to 2 points below the positional average
200,000 – 3 to 5 points below the positional average
300,000 – 6 to 9 points below the positional average
400,000 – 10 or more points below the positional average
Other Factors:
-100,000 if a player does not feature for a single minute in a matchday
-100,000 for any player receiving a red card independent of minutes played
A player’s value can not drop below 1,000,000 and the player value is determined after all the matches of the week have been played. Transfers are locked until the transfer market opens for the next matchday and all the changes take place only once it is open.
Tip: It is recommended to build up some team value early because after a certain point most of the managers have lots of team value and similar teams so it becomes difficult to gain ranks.
Bundesliga Fantasy Substitutions
You can substitute players in and out at any time of the matchday but you will lose points if you place a player that has already played in your starting XI to the bench and you cannot put him back on the field and get his points.
The changes that you make will be saved automatically as there is no save button. You can sub any bench player to your starting XI as long as it is in a valid formation.
Tip: It isn’t necessary to have 11 players in your team at the end of the week so in case you have any player who got negative points, you can take him out and finish the matchday without a full XI.
Fantasy Bundesliga Stars
Instead of the ordinary captain and vice-captain multipliers, Fantasy Bundesliga uses the concept of “stars” instead. You select a star for every outfield position (forward, midfield and defence) and the points of the players you have selected is multiplied by 1.5x. You can change your star throughout the matchday for every individual match according to the timings so you can always try different combinations if you aren’t happy with the scores of your players.
Tip: 15 points for a star player (without the multiplier and 22 with it) is considered good enough by “sharks” for forwards and midfielders whereas 12 points (18 with multiplier) is considered a decent score for defenders in most cases. Even if your star player gets a good score, you can always try your luck and get more points by starring another player with a better fixture.
General Scoring Rules
The game has a performance-based scoring system and based on their production on the pitch, they will either receive positive or negative points. The players will score points according to the following table:
| Action | Points | |
|---|---|---|
| All Players | Played 1-69 minutes (1) | +1 |
| Played 70+ minutes (1) | +2 | |
| Scoring two goals in the same game | +1 | |
| Scoring three goals in the same game | +3 | |
| Scoring the winning goal (2) | +1 | |
| Winning team | +1 | |
| Losing team | -1 | |
| Losing team by 3 or more goal difference | -2 | |
| Yellow card (3) | -1 | |
| Yellow-red Card (3) | -3 | |
| Red card (straight red) | -5 | |
| Own goal | -4 | |
| Foul causing a penalty | -2 | |
| Penalty Miss | -3 | |
| Converted Penalty (4) | +3 |
Performance Points
| Action | GK | DEF | MID | FWD |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Non-penalty goal | +10 | +6 | +5 | +4 |
| Assist (1) | +10 | +5 | +4 | +3 |
| Every 2 passes to a shot (2) | +5 | +3 | +2 | +2 |
| Clean sheet (3) | +3 | +3 | - | - |
| Penalty Save | +5 | +10 | +10 | +10 |
| Every 5 duels won | - | +2 | +1 | +1 |
| Every 2 shots on goal | +5 | +4 | +3 | +2 |
| Every 2 shots on goal saved | +3 | - | - | - |
| Every goal conceded | -1 | -1 | - | - |
(2) A pass to a shot is awarded to a player who plays the final successful pass of an attempt that does not lead to a goal.
(3) Clean sheet points will only be awarded to a player if the following two conditions are met: (1) their team doesn't concede a goal in the entire match and (2) the player plays more than 61 minutes of the match.
A player will lose his clean sheet even if he is subbed out before the team concedes and -1 for every goal conceded will be added to his score as well.
Tip: The game incentivizes managers to pick players based on performance rather than relying on goals, assists and clean sheets so it is a proven strategy to own players that are heavily involved in their team’s attack who take lots of shots and create lots of chances. Players who have authority over set pieces are a reliable source for bonus points.
Bundesliga Set Piece Takers
The set-piece takers for each club have been sorted according to the first, second and third choice from left to right.
| Team | Penalties | Direct free-kicks | Corners and indirect free-kicks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arminia Bielefeld | Fabian Klos (FWD, 7M) | Alessandro Schöpf (MID, 6M), Masaya Okugawa (MID, 6M), Sebastian Vasiliadis (MID, 4M) | Alessandro Schöpf (MID, 6M), Masaya Okugawa (MID, 6M), Sebastian Vasiliadis (MID, 4M) |
| FC Augsburg | Daniel Caligiuri (MID, 9M), Florian Niederlechner (FWD, 8M), Alfred Finnbogason (FWD, 6M) | Daniel Caligiuri (MID, 9M), Micheal Gregoritsch (FWD, 7M) | Daniel Caligiuri (MID, 9M), Marco Richter (MID, 7M) |
| Bayer Leverkusen | Lucas Alario (FWD, 10M), Patrik Schick (FWD, 13M), Charles Aránguiz (MID, 7M) | Kerem Demirbay (MID, 11M), Nadiem Amiri (MID, 11M) | Kerem Demirbay (MID, 11M), Nadiem Amiri (MID, 11M) |
| Bayern Munich | Robert Lewandowski (FWD, 17M), Thomas Müller (FWD, 15M) | Joshua Kimmich (MID, 15M), Robert Lewandowski (FWD, 15M) | Joshua Kimmich (MID, 15M), Thomas Müller (FWD, 15M) |
| VfL Bochum | Takuma Asano (FWD, 6M), Danny Blum (FWD, 4M), Silvère Ganvoula (FWD, 4M) | Gerrit Holtmann (MID, 5M), Eduard Löwen (MID, 5M) | Gerrit Holtmann (MID, 5M) |
| Borussia Dortmund | Erling Haaland (FWD, 15M), Marco Reus (FWD, 13M) | Marco Reus (FWD, 13M), Raphaël Guerreiro (DEF, 14M), Thorgan Hazard (MID, 12M) | Marco Reus (FWD, 13M), Raphaël Guerreiro (DEF, 14M), Giovanni Reyna (MID, 12M) |
| Borussia Mönchengladbach | Lars Stindl (MID, 13M), Jonas Hofmann (MID, 12M), Ramy Bensebaini (DEF, 11M) | Jonas Hofmann (MID, 12M), Lars Stindl (MID, 13M) | Jonas Hofmann (MID, 12M), Lars Stindl (MID, 13M) |
| Eintracht Frankfurt | Rafael Santos Borré (FWD, 7M), Gonçalo Paciência (FWD, 5M) | Filip Kostić (MID, 14M), Daichi Kamada (MID, 11M) | Filip Kostić (MID, 14M), Daichi Kamada (MID, 11M) |
| FC Köln | Ondrej Duda (MID, 9M), Mark Uth (FWD, 8M), Sebastian Andersson (FWD, 8M) | Ondrej Duda (MID, 9M), Jonas Hector (MID, 9M), Florian Kainz (MID, 7M) | Ondrej Duda (MID, 9M), Jonas Hector (MID, 9M), Florian Kainz (MID, 7M) |
| SC Freiburg | Vincenzo Grifo (MID, 12M), Nils Petersen (FWD, 8M), Rolland Sallai (MID, 10M) | Vincenzo Grifo (MID, 12M), Christian Günter (DEF, 11M) | Christian Günter (DEF, 11M), Jonathan Schmid (MID, 7M) |
| Greuther Fürth | Branimir Hrgota (FWD, 6M), Julian Green (MID, 6M), Paul Seguin (MID, 6M) | Julian Green (MID, 6M) | Julian Green (MID, 6M), Paul Seguin (MID, 6M) |
| Hertha BSC | Dodi Lukebakio (FWD, 8M), Matheus Cunha (FWD, 12M), Krzysztof Piątek (FWD, 9M) | Vladimir Darida (MID, 8M), Maximilian Mittelstädt (DEF, 7M), Marvin Plattenhardt (DEF, 7M) | Maximilian Mittelstädt (DEF, 7M), Marvin Plattenhardt (DEF, 7M), Vladimir Darida (MID, 8M) |
| TSG Hoffenheim | Andrej Kramarić (FWD, 14M), Munas Dabbur (FWD, 7M), Robert Skov (FWD, 8M) | Robert Skov (FWD, 8M), Andrej Kramarić (FWD, 14M) | Dennis Geiger (MID, 6M), Robert Skov (FWD, 8M) |
| FSV Mainz 05 | Daniel Brosinski (DEF, 6M), Moussa Niakhaté (DEF, 7M), Kevin Stöger (MID, 5M) | Daniel Brosinski (DEF, 6M), Silvan Widmer (DEF, 7M) | Daniel Brosinski (DEF, 6M), Silvan Widmer (DEF, 7M) |
| RB Leipzig | Marcel Sabitzer (MID, 13M), André Silva (FWD, 15M), Dominik Szoboszlai (MID, 11M) | Marcel Sabitzer (MID, 13M), Dominik Szoboszlai (MID, 11M), Christopher Nkunku (MID, 14M) | Marcel Sabitzer (MID, 13M), Angeliño (DEF, 14M), Dominik Szoboszlai (MID, 11M) |
| VfB Stuttgart | Silas Katompa Mvumpa, Saša Kalajdžić (FWD, 12M), Philipp Förster (MID, 6M) | Borna Sosa (DEF, 11M), Daniel Didavi (MID, 6M) | Borna Sosa (DEF, 11M), Daniel Didavi (MID, 6M), Philipp Förster (MID, 6M), Phillip Klement (MID, 3M) |
| Union Berlin | Max Kruse (FWD, 11M), Marcus Ingvartsen (FWD, 6M) | Max Kruse (FWD, 11M), Christopher Trimmel (DEF, 10M) | Christopher Trimmel (DEF, 10M), Max Kruse (FWD, 11M) |
| Wolfsburg | Wout Weghorst (FWD, 14M), Maximilian Arnold (MID, 12M) | Maximilian Arnold (MID, 12M) | Maximilian Arnold (MID, 12M), Josip Brekalo (MID, 10M) |
Note: Silas Katompa Mvumpa hasn’t been added to the game yet and is currently serving a three-month suspension until September 11.
You can find additional Bundesliga Fantasy resources for the 21/22 season here.
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