The 2026/27 Fantasy Premier League season starts TODAY! 🔥
With the Gameweek 1 deadline drawing closer, now is the time to make those final decisions and lock in your opening FPL squad.
This complete FPL Gameweek 1 Guide covers everything you need to prepare, from the best player picks and latest ownership trends to Elite manager team reveals, fixture analysis and chip strategy.
Last updated: 21 August 2026
The Fantasy Premier League Gameweek 1 deadline is Friday 21 August at 18:30 BST. (TODAY!)
As of 14:00 BST, 8,154,106 managers have registered an FPL team for the 2026/27 season.
Think you can beat the Fantasy Football Fix community this season?
Mini-League Code: 0hdueq
The latest Fantasy Premier League news that could impact your Gameweek 1 team:
🔴 Arsenal have agreed a £51m deal to sign Ezri Konsa (£4.5m). Although he is unlikely to go straight into the starting XI, his arrival could soon make the minutes and starts of Cristhian Mosquera (£5.5m) and Ben White (£5.5m) less secure.
⚪ Tottenham have been linked with Savinho (£6.5m), Omar Marmoush (£7.0m) and Cody Gakpo (£7.0m). If any of them join Spurs and become regular starters, they could offer excellent FPL value at their current prices.
🇸🇦 Ollie Watkins (£8.0m) is reportedly keen on a move to Al-Hilal. The Aston Villa forward is currently selected by 11.4% of FPL managers, making this an important situation to monitor before the deadline.
🔵 Gomez (£5.0m) started for Brighton against Tromsø in the UEFA Conference League. If he keeps his place for Gameweek 1, he could be a useful budget enabler for managers planning to Bench Boost.
Here are our latest FPL tips and Gameweek 1 articles ahead of the deadline:
👉 NEW: 10× Top-10k Manager FPL Egypt’s Final Gameweek 1 Team Reveal
👉 NEW: Want to Win Your Mini-League? Follow These Elite FPL Managers
👉 NEW: Two Players Will Break 100% EO in FPL Gameweek 1 - Do You Own Them?
👉 NEW: We Analysed Top-10k FPL Rate My Team Drafts—Here’s the GW1 Squad
👉 NEW: Best FPL Team for Gameweek 1: The Elite Consensus XI Revealed
Which players are appearing in the most Fantasy Premier League squads?
FPL ownership can change quickly during pre-season following transfers and injuries.
The arrows (⬆️ ⬇️) next to each player show whether their ownership is trending up or down.
Here are the five most-owned FPL players:
1️⃣ Haaland — 69.4% ⬆️
2️⃣ João Pedro — 63.7% ⬆️
3️⃣ B. Fernandes — 51.4% ⬆️
4️⃣ Szoboszlai — 41.7% ⬆️
5️⃣ Mbeumo — 37.2% ⬆️
But what happens when we compare those selections with some of the world’s best FPL managers?
Our Elite XI: Team Reveals tracks the squads of proven Fantasy Premier League managers throughout the season.
Here are the five most-owned players among the Elite managers:
1️⃣ Calvert-Lewin — 100% ⬆️
2️⃣ B. Fernandes — 92.3% ⬆️
3️⃣ Mbeumo — 92.3% ⬆️
4️⃣ Kinský — 84.6%
5️⃣ Calafiori — 69.2% ⬆️
Comparing Elite manager ownership with overall FPL ownership can reveal some fascinating differences.
👉 See Every Elite Manager's Latest FPL Team
One of the hardest parts of preparing for Gameweek 1 is turning all the available information into a balanced 15-man squad.
Seeing how proven managers are approaching the same decisions can provide valuable inspiration.
Fantasy Football Fix's Elite XI: Team Reveals lets you follow the latest squads from some of the world's most successful FPL managers.
🏆 Between them, the Elite XI have recorded more than 80 Top 10k finishes, including numerous Top 5k and Top 1k finishes.
Rather than relying on a team reveal published weeks before the deadline, you can track their latest moves as Gameweek 1 approaches.
👀 Latest Gameweek 1 drafts
🔄 Every squad change
📱 Notifications when managers update their teams
👉 See the Latest Elite XI Team Reveals
What could the best FPL Gameweek 1 team look like?
We used Fantasy Football Fix’s player projections to optimise a £100m squad around some of the biggest premium picks.
👉 See Our Best FPL Gameweek 1 Team
You can also use the Assistant Manager and Future Planner to experiment with your own squad structure, lock players you want to own and compare different drafts across the opening Gameweeks.
👉 NEW Best FPL Team for Gameweek 1: The Elite Consensus XI Revealed
We combined the latest drafts of Elite managers with 81 top-10k finishes between them to create the ultimate Gameweek 1 Consensus XI.
👉 NEW We Analysed Top-10k FPL Rate My Team Drafts—Here’s the GW1 Squad
Discover the £100m Gameweek 1 squad created from publicly shared Rate My Team drafts belonging to managers who finished inside last season’s top 10k.
👉 Haaland, Bruno, Mbeumo & Semenyo in One Team
See how our Assistant Manager built a complete £100m squad around Erling Haaland, Bruno Fernandes, Bryan Mbeumo and Antoine Semenyo.
We've also spoken to individual managers about the thinking behind their early 2026/27 squads.
Finding the best FPL players for Gameweek 1 means balancing price, fixtures, minutes and points potential.
We’ve picked out the standout options across the key Fantasy Premier League price points.
Budget defenders can free up funds for premium picks while still offering strong FPL value.
Our guide covers the best £4.0m–£4.5m defenders for minutes, fixtures, DEFCON and attacking threat.
👉 Best Budget FPL Defenders for Gameweek 1
Our guide compares the best £5.0m–£8.0m FPL defenders for clean sheets, attacking threat, DEFCON and predicted points.
👉 Best FPL Defenders for Gameweek 1: £5.0m–£8.0m
Our guide compares the best £5.0m–£6.5m FPL midfielders for attacking threat, fixtures and predicted points.
👉 Best Budget FPL Midfielders for Gameweek 1
Finding a cheap forward with secure minutes and genuine attacking potential can provide valuable flexibility elsewhere in your squad.
👉 Best Budget FPL Forwards: Who Is Actually Worth Picking?
The £7.0m+ forward bracket could be one of the most important price points when constructing a balanced Gameweek 1 squad.
👉 Best FPL Forwards for Gameweek 1: £7.0m+ Picks
This section brings together some of the biggest Fantasy Premier League debates, trends and talking points ahead of Gameweek 1.
We’ve identified the best-value FPL picks who could outperform their starting price.
👉 Best FPL Bargains and Underpriced Players for 2026/27
High ownership does not always mean a player is a good selection.
Some popular Gameweek 1 options have concerns around price, expected minutes, fixtures or fitness.
👉 FPL Players to Avoid: Gameweek 1 Traps
When should you use your Wildcard, Bench Boost, Triple Captain and Free Hit?
Our complete FPL chip strategy guide for 2026/27 is coming soon.
👉FPL Chip Strategy 2026/27: Best Time to Use Every Chip
Penalties, free-kicks and corners can give players extra routes to FPL points.
Our full FPL set-piece takers guide for all 20 Premier League teams is coming soon.
👉 FPL Set-Piece Takers 2026/27: Penalties, Corners & Free Kicks
With only hours remaining, now is the time to review every part of your Fantasy Premier League squad before confirming your final draft.
Make sure you have:
✅ Checked the latest injury and availability news
✅ Reviewed predicted starting line-ups
✅ Considered each player’s pre-season minutes
✅ Accounted for new signings and possible role changes
✅ Identified penalty and set-piece takers
✅ Compared the opening fixture schedules
✅ Checked overall and Elite manager ownership
✅ Reviewed the latest predicted points
✅ Selected your captain and vice-captain
✅ Confirmed your starting XI and bench order
✅ Decided whether to use an early chip
Your first FPL squad does not need to be perfect. Prioritise secure starters, favourable fixtures and dependable captaincy options while retaining enough flexibility to respond as the new Premier League season develops.
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