The second allocation of chips for the 2025/26 Fantasy season is now live, following the Gameweek 19 deadline on Tuesday 30 December at 18:00 GMT.
From Gameweek 20 onwards, Fantasy managers once again have access to all four chips — Wildcard, Free Hit, Triple Captain and Bench Boost — which can be deployed anytime up to the end of the season.
The initial set of chips needed to be used before Gameweek 19, mirroring the requirement to activate the first Wildcard before the mid-season cut-off as in previous seasons.
Historically, many experienced managers choose to hold their chips for the final third of the season. The main reason is fixture disruption caused by domestic cup competitions, which often leads to Blank and Double Gameweeks later in the campaign.
Understanding how and why these Gameweeks occur is key to maximising chip value.
A standard Fantasy season consists of 38 Gameweeks, with each round usually featuring 10 matches — meaning every club in the Premier League plays once.
Blank Gameweek
A Blank Gameweek happens when one or more teams do not have a league fixture scheduled. Any Fantasy assets from those clubs will score zero points, creating major selection headaches.
Double Gameweek
A Double Gameweek occurs when a team plays twice in a single Gameweek, offering managers the chance to significantly boost points — particularly through captaincy or chip usage.
Blank Gameweeks usually arise when league fixtures are postponed due to clashes with domestic cup competitions.
In recent seasons, key examples have included Blank Gameweeks falling on the same weekends as the EFL Cup Final and the FA Cup semi-finals. Clubs still involved in those competitions had their Premier League matches postponed as a result.
Those postponed fixtures don’t disappear — they are simply rearranged into later Gameweeks, which is what creates Double Gameweeks further down the line.
Planning ahead for these schedule shifts is where chips — especially Free Hit, Bench Boost and Triple Captain — can deliver a decisive edge.
With chips now refreshed, some managers may be considering an early Wildcard to get ahead of upcoming fixture swings.
If you want a quick, data-led overview, head to the Big Data: Team Reveal tool to see the optimal squad for the next five Gameweeks, based on underlying statistics, fixture difficulty and projected points.
Prefer something more tailored? You can build a bespoke Wildcard using the Assistant Manager tool. Include/exclude certain players, change formations and Gameweek horizons to suit your style, while letting the model highlight the best-future transfers for your squad.
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