Every point your FPL players earn comes from a specific real-world action tracked by Opta. Here is the full 2026/27 scoring table, followed by the detail on every category that is regularly misunderstood.
The full 2026/27 scoring table
| Action | Points | |---|---| | Playing up to 60 minutes | 1 | | Playing 60 minutes or more (excluding stoppage time) | 2 | | Goal scored by a goalkeeper | 10 | | Goal scored by a defender | 6 | | Goal scored by a midfielder | 5 | | Goal scored by a forward | 4 | | Assist | 3 | | Clean sheet (goalkeeper or defender) | 4 | | Clean sheet (midfielder) | 1 | | Every 3 shots saved by a goalkeeper | 1 | | Penalty save | 5 | | 10 defensive contributions by a defender | 2 | | 12 defensive contributions by a midfielder | 2 | | 12 defensive contributions by a forward | 2 | | Bonus points (best players in a match) | 1–3 | | Penalty miss | −2 | | Every 2 goals conceded (goalkeeper or defender) | −1 | | Yellow card | −1 | | Red card | −3 | | Own goal | −2 |
Goalkeeper goals are worth 10 points, not 6. Most older articles and some third-party apps still print the wrong figure. The 10-point value is correct for 2026/27.
Minutes played
Players earn 1 point for playing up to 59 minutes and 2 points for playing 60 minutes or more. The 60-minute threshold excludes stoppage time — a player who comes off in the 60th minute before any added time has played 60 minutes and earns 2.
A starting player typically earns the 2-point appearance bonus unless substituted before half-time or early in the second half.
Clean sheets
A goalkeeper or defender earns 4 points for a clean sheet. A midfielder earns 1 point. Forwards do not earn a clean sheet bonus.
Two conditions apply:
- The player must have played at least 60 minutes.
- If a player is substituted off before any goal is conceded, their clean sheet stands — provided they played 60 or more minutes. The clean sheet belongs to what happened during the player's time on the pitch, not the final match result.
This matters when a starting defender is rotated off at the 75th minute and the team concedes in the 85th. That defender keeps their clean sheet and their 4 points.
Assists
An assist is awarded to the player making the final pass or touch before a goal is scored. This is the most disputed scoring category in most mini-leagues, and the edge cases are worth knowing.
Defensive touches: An assist survives one defensive touch, provided the scorer receives the ball inside the penalty area. If the scorer received the ball outside the box, the defensive touch must not have significantly altered the pass's intended destination — either a specific team-mate or an area of the pitch.
Possession lost: If the would-be scorer loses possession and then regains it before scoring, no assist is awarded.
Rebounds: If a shot is blocked, saved, or hits the woodwork and a goal comes from the rebound, an assist is still awarded to the player who made the original shot.
Own goals: If a player's shot or pass forces an opponent to put it in their own net, an assist is awarded to the player whose action caused it.
Penalties and free-kicks won: The player who wins the foul receives an assist if a goal is scored directly from it. Exception: if the taker also won the foul, no assist is given — you cannot assist yourself.
Defensive contributions
Defensive contributions — often shortened to DefCon — were introduced in 2025/26 and are retained for 2026/27. The thresholds and eligible actions differ by position.
| Position | Actions that count | Threshold | Points | |---|---|---|---| | Defender | Clearances, blocks, interceptions, tackles (CBIT) | 10 in a match | +2 | | Midfielder | Clearances, blocks, interceptions, recoveries, tackles (CBIRT) | 12 in a match | +2 | | Forward | Clearances, blocks, interceptions, recoveries, tackles (CBIRT) | 12 in a match | +2 |
Recoveries count for midfielders and forwards but not for defenders. This is the most frequently misquoted detail — if you see a source listing recoveries as a defender action, it is wrong.
The bonus is capped at +2 per player per match regardless of how far past the threshold they go. Actions above the threshold still contribute to the Bonus Points System.
Bonus points
At the end of each match, the three highest BPS performers earn 3, 2, and 1 bonus points respectively.
Tie rules — worked example:
- Two players tie for first: both receive 3 points; the third-placed player receives 1.
- Two players tie for second: the first-placed player receives 3; both tied players receive 2.
- Two players tie for third: first receives 3, second receives 2, both tied players receive 1.
More than three players can earn bonus points in a single match when ties occur.
2026/27 BPS rework: The formula was updated to reduce overlap with defensive-contribution points and to improve bonus prospects for goalkeepers, full-backs, and attacking players. High-BPS archetypes from previous seasons may behave differently this season.
Projected bonus appears in live scores after 20 minutes of each match. That projection moves throughout the game and is not final until the scores lock.
Live scoring and the later lockdown
From 2026/27, all live scoring — global rank, all league standings, Head-to-Head duels, and FPL Cup ties — updates continuously during matches rather than at intervals.
The more consequential change is the lockdown time. Scores are not final until 09:00 UK time on the day after the Gameweek's final match. Previously, scores locked approximately one hour after the final whistle. The extended window allows Opta's post-match review data to feed into BPS and defensive-contribution calculations before anything is confirmed.
What this means in practice: if you are in Nigeria and check standings on a Sunday night after the last match finishes, those standings can still move. A disputed defensive-contribution count or BPS recalculation can shift league positions overnight. A score that looks settled at midnight may be different at 09:00 UK the following morning.
Wait for 09:00 UK before treating a Gameweek score as final.