Fantasy Premier League (FPL) has announced a major shake-up of the scoring system, with defenders and defensive midfielders having extra routes to points.
The 2025/26 game has yet to launch but FPL began teasing changes on Friday morning (July 18), meaning it can&#8217;t be long before it goes live.
In this article, we detail what&#8217;s new and explore which players will have benefited most last season.
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<ul>
<li>New points changes for FPL a major shake-up of the traditional scoring system</li>
<li>Any player can score new defensive contribution points but centre-backs and defensive midfielders the big winners</li>
<li>Returns will be capped at a maximum of two extra points</li>
</ul>
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<h2>New FPL scoring changes: Defenders</h2>
Any defender who manages at total of 10 clearances, blocks, interceptions and tackles in a single match will score two points.
It won&#8217;t matter if they make more, with the maximum reward capped at two points &#8211; but strong defensive contributions could help them earn <a href="https://www.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/fpl-bonus-points">bonus points</a> as usual.
<div id="attachment_73334" style="width: 1034px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-73334" class="size-full wp-image-73334" src="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Tarkowski.jpg" alt="James Tarkowski. Picture by Getty Images" width="1024" height="683" srcset="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Tarkowski.jpg 1024w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Tarkowski-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Tarkowski-768x512.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />James Tarkowski. Picture by Getty Images</div>
<h2>New FPL scoring changes: Midfielders and forwards</h2>
Midfielders and forwards will also be able to earn extra points this season.
In addition to clearances, blocks, interceptions and tackles like defenders, ball recoveries will also be counted.
This is particularly aimed at rewarding defensive midfielders &#8211; through actions like being first to a loose ball &#8211; although any midfielder or attacker is eligible.
Midfielders and forwards will need to complete 12 of these actions in a single game to earn their two extra FPL points.
<div id="attachment_73335" style="width: 1034px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-73335" class="size-full wp-image-73335" src="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Anderson.jpg" alt="Elliot Anderson. Picture by Getty Images" width="1024" height="683" srcset="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Anderson.jpg 1024w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Anderson-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Anderson-768x512.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />Elliot Anderson. Picture by Getty Images</div>
<h2>Which players would have benefited most from the changes last season?</h2>
While all outfield players can in theory benefit from these changes, it was mainly centre-backs and defensive midfielders who profited most.
Top of the list was James Tarkowski. The Everton centre-back would have earned 44 extra points.
Moises Caicedo would have been close behind, with the Chelsea midfielder gaining 42 additional points.
Jan Bednarek&#8217;s inclusion in third &#8211; with 40 &#8211; highlights the potential of players from promoted teams.
The full top 10 according to FPL was as follows:
<ul>
<li>James Tarkowski &#8211; 44</li>
<li>Moises Caicedo &#8211; 42</li>
<li>Jan Bednarek &#8211; 40</li>
<li>Dean Huijsen &#8211; 38</li>
<li>Murillo &#8211; 38</li>
<li>Elliot Anderson &#8211; 36</li>
<li>Joao Gomes &#8211; 36</li>
<li>Idrissa Gueye &#8211; 36</li>
<li>Wout Faes &#8211; 34</li>
<li>Christian Norgaard &#8211; 34</li>
</ul>
This could have a significant impact on our selections.
For example, Caicedo only managed 98 points last season but with defensive contributions added, he would have outscored Brennan Johnson by three points. Johnson recorded 11 goals and six assists but would not have earned any defensive contributions.
Anderson would have come just two short of Kaoru Mitoma&#8217;s total of 145, with the Brighton winger also not managing any extras.
<div id="attachment_64878" style="width: 1034px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-64878" class="size-full wp-image-64878" src="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/Moises-Caicedo.jpg" alt="Moises Caicedo. Picture by Getty Images" width="1024" height="683" srcset="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/Moises-Caicedo.jpg 1024w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/Moises-Caicedo-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/Moises-Caicedo-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/Moises-Caicedo-610x407.jpg 610w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />Moises Caicedo. Picture by Getty Images</div>
&nbsp;
<h3>How Declan Rice&#8217;s historic data bodes well &#8211; but beware of positional change</h3>
FPL delved into the <a href="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/opta/" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c="1" title="FPL Stats by OPTA - Player and Team Stats">stats</a> records and noted how Declan Rice could be one to watch under the new scoring system.
Rice would have collected 62 extra points for defensive contributions in 2022/23 and his 54 points in 2021/22 was the second best tally they could find.
During both of these seasons however he was at West Ham, while the Arsenal player could be afford more freedom to get forward this season following the purchase of Martin Zubimendi.
So while Rice may get more attacking returns this season, the defensive contributions may come via the Gunners&#8217; new defensive midfielder.
<div id="attachment_73230" style="width: 1034px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-73230" class="size-full wp-image-73230" src="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Rice-corner.jpg" alt="Declan Rice. Picture by Getty Images" width="1024" height="683" srcset="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Rice-corner.jpg 1024w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Rice-corner-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Rice-corner-768x512.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />Declan Rice. Picture by Getty Images</div>
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Major shake-up of FPL scoring system to benefit defenders and defensive midfielders

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