Wildcard, Bench Boost, Free Hit, Triple Captain: when to play

When to play your Wildcard

You get two Wildcards, one in each half. The first must be used by the Gameweek 19 deadline, 13:30 GMT on Saturday 2 January 2027. Gameweeks 6 to 10 are often a sensible window: the teams have settled, and a good run of fixtures can last a while. You cannot play Wildcard in Gameweek 1.

The second Wildcard is usually better in the spring, often somewhere in Gameweeks 27 to 33. Playing it a week or two before a big double lets you build a 15 of players who all have two games, without a hit, so Bench Boost has a full squad.

What Bench Boost does and when to use it

Bench Boost adds the points scored by your substitute goalkeeper and three outfield bench players to your gameweek score for one round. You get two, one in each half. Automatic substitutions do not apply while it is active, because all 15 players count.

A single gameweek is usually a weak time, because the cheap players on the bench often do not start. Save it for a confirmed double (often Gameweek 34 or 37) where those four can play twice. The 2025/26 bench table on the Bench Boost page shows what the substitutes actually scored. That table is arithmetic. Bench Boost was not played.

Free Hit (freehit) and Triple Captain strategy

Free Hit (often searched as freehit) replaces your squad for one round, then your previous 15 come back. You get two. You cannot play it in Gameweek 1, and you cannot play the two Free Hits in consecutive gameweeks, so Gameweek 19 then Gameweek 20 is not allowed. Saved free transfers are kept. A blank, when you are short of starters, is the usual time.

Triple Captain triples your captain’s points instead of doubling them. You get two. Do not spend the first one on a single home fixture if a proper double is still ahead. Wait for two favourable matches for an in-form, penalty-taking premium.

Lessons from the 2025/26 reconstructive replay

In the 2025/26 replay, no chip was played. In Gameweek 34, a blank, the optimiser made three transfers with one free transfer and took an 8-point hit, scoring 28 net. Free Hit and Wildcard were both still available. The chip calculator ranks what Triple Captain and Bench Boost would have added in each scored week.

Chip timing belongs alongside weekly transfers. Holding chips unused while taking heavy hits, or burning them on low-ceiling weeks, is an expensive tactical error.

When do FPL chips reset?

FPL chips reset at the Gameweek 19 deadline. In 2026/27 that is 13:30 GMT on Saturday 2 January 2027. The first Wildcard, Free Hit, Bench Boost and Triple Captain do not carry over. A new set of four is available from Gameweek 20. That is eight chips in the season, two of each.

What are the FPL chips and when do you play them?

The FPL chips are Wildcard, Bench Boost, Free Hit and Triple Captain, and you get two of each. The chips page has a hub for each. Play Wildcard when the squad has at least three problems that free transfers cannot fix. Play Bench Boost in a double when all 15 players have confirmed starts. Play Free Hit in a blank when you are short of starters. Save Triple Captain for a confirmed double where a premium has two starts.

When should I play Wildcard in FPL?

Play Wildcard when your squad has at least three structural problems (such as long-term injuries, lost starting spots, or a brutal run of fixtures) that regular free transfers cannot fix.

FPL when to Wildcard: should I play it early or hold?

Playing the first Wildcard between Gameweeks 6 and 10 is usually more useful than holding it to the deadline. The new squad then has a long run. In 2026/27 that deadline is 13:30 GMT on Saturday 2 January 2027. If you leave the first Wildcard, it is lost.

What is Bench Boost in FPL and what is a good return?

Bench Boost scores all four of your substitutes alongside your starting eleven for one round. You get two in 2026/27, one in each half. A return in the mid-teens or higher from the bench is a strong week. The 2025/26 replay never played it.

When should I play Bench Boost in FPL?

Play Bench Boost in a major double gameweek late in the season, usually between Gameweeks 34 and 37 when rearranged fixtures let your substitutes play twice.

When should you play the Free Hit (freehit) chip?

Play Free Hit (or freehit) during a severe blank gameweek when postponed fixtures leave you with fewer than eight or nine playing starters. It lets you field a full eleven without wrecking your long-term squad with transfer hits.

What is Triple Captain in FPL, and when should you play it?

Triple Captain triples your captain’s official points for one gameweek instead of doubling them. You get two in 2026/27, one in each half. Save one for a confirmed double where a premium has two starts.

Which FPL chip is most often wasted?

Free Hit and Bench Boost are the chips managers most often waste. Free Hit gets spent on minor single-gameweek punts, while Bench Boost often fires while cheap non-starters on the bench score zero.