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Fantasy Premier League 2020-21: FPL season launches with new gameweek deadline rule

The new Premier League season is on the horizon: Premier League
The new Premier League season is on the horizon: Premier League

The new Fantasy Premier League season has officially launched, and will go ahead with an adjusted rule on gameweek deadlines in an effort to prevent leaked team news influencing the game.

The 2020-21 game went live on Saturday with an expected 7-8 million fantasy managers now able to begin selecting their 15-man squad for the new season, which begins on 12 September.

One problem that has developed in recent seasons is more and more social media accounts leaking team news before their official announcement by Premier League clubs.

It has meant FPL managers can change their team minutes before the gameweek deadline, which comes an hour before the first game’s kick-off, and gain an advantage. An example was the final day of the season when it spread online that Mohamed Salah would not be starting for Liverpool.

In response, FPL has moved the gameweek deadline to be 90 minutes before the first kick-off, limiting the likelihood of line-ups leaking before the cut-off for making transfers.

The game has also revealed several odd positional changes, with Manchester United duo Marcus Rashford and Mason Greenwood switching from the forwards category to become midfielders, as has Arsenal striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.