Every week, millions of adults pretend that theyre football managers.
I know this because I am one of them.
With a budget of 100 million (digital) pounds, we build virtual squads of footballers.
If their real-life counterparts play well, we win points.
By the end of the season, the team with the most points wins.
Butwhatexactly do they win?
Well, that depends on whom you ask.
But most of us fight for a far greater honour: bragging rights.
It’s free, every week, in your inbox.
Win your mini league of friends and bask in the glory of your exalted social status.
Finish last and face eternal shame for your pathetic football knowledge.
The stakes are high.
So high, in fact, that some players now employ controversial advisors: data analytics.
These are unscrupulous tactics.
I can no longer trust my rivals.
Are they even making their own decisions?
Who is the real winner when teams are guided by AI?
What happens to a game thats managed by machines?
Regrettably, I now must ask these questions of myself.
A new era for fantasy football?
After several seasons of mixed results in FPL, I started searching for analyticalsupport.
I soon found my saviours.
There wasBen Crellin, a Brit who builds spreadsheets to navigate the season.
There were even entire companies dedicated to FPL analytics.
The biggest of them all isFantasy Football Hub, a startup based in the UK.
After launching with a blog focus in 2019, Fantasy Football Hub began experimenting with point projections.
We doubled down on it.
Using a mind for stats developed during psychology research, Thomas built alongitudinal multilevel regression modelfor the platform.
The model scoursdatafrom football analytics kingpinOpta.
All the information is pooled into predicted points and transfer recommendations.
The tips have proven popular.
A deal like that is too hard to ignore.
I signed up to the service and explored the analytics.
I copied the models top team to start the season.
Discussions with my friends were no longer needed.
But then theplan begangive me pause.
Something just didnt feel right about AIs attempts to beat my friends.
Then I recall a tip from Thomas: dont just blindly follow the model.
Instead, use the analysis as a sense check.
With my good sense reactivated, I replace the wretched beasts from Spurs.
AI will no longer be my boss, but merely my employee.
Still, the model lacks a certain human touch.
I miss speaking to my pals about FPL until I find a superior alternative: anAIthatactslike a friend.
Built byFantasy Football Fix, the tool follows the conversational trend set by ChatGPT.
Fix bills the app as the worlds first AI chat assistant dedicated to FPL.
The company has named the bot can you guess?
Ask a question and ChatFPL will answer with substantiating evidence.
Request information and the bot will reply with digestible data.
The depth of detail is impressive.
I compare multiple players across their expected goals, minutes, and future prices.
My transfers are optimised for budgets and opponents on specific gameweeks.
Unlike my pals, the bot provides exactly what I want.
Its also a fairly fluid conversationalist.
With each response, ChatFPL invites follow-up questions.
Our dialogue then moves in new directions.
Like his competitors at Hub, Brown defies claims that the AI replaces human decision-making.
We give recommendations it shouldnt be just an answer, he says.
The interaction does enrich my experience.
It gives ChatFPL a semblance of humanity.
Under the hood, however, the system is fully computational.
Working as a team
ChatFPLs artificial brain is an evolving roster of LLMs.
The Pro version currently runs on Anthrophics Claude 3.5 Sonnet, while the Lite model uses OpenAIs GPT-4o-mini.
When new LLMs emerge, the team QA tests them and then considers integration.
Were hooked into all of the main models, says Adam Moss, Fixs technical director.
But the key part is that the model acts as an interpreter to the users question.
It then determines what additional information needs to be injected into the prompt.
The system also continuously updates the data through variousAPIs.
But in my experience, ChatGPT can still need a push into the present day.
At one point, the bot suggests buying Dominic Solanke from Bournemouth.
After an indignant reminder, the bot swiftly delivers updated suggestions.
Sensibly, they arrive with a profuse apology.
I forgive the transgression to focus on what really matters: winning my mini league.
Building an FPL champion
My strategy is decided.
I shall blend the analytics with my own ideas.
I scour the AI-generated teams projected to maximise my points.
I ask ChatFPLs advice on my own amendments.
I feed the updated squad to the Hubs AI transfer recommender.
I pick my final squad.
I have become an FPL cyborg: a nerdy football fan merged with analytics.
I wait with baited breath for the results.
The fusion decision soon pays off.
After the first round of fixtures, Im top of my mini-league.
But the decisions are becoming harder.
As the new season progresses, the challenges grow.
No longer do I merely have to buy 11 players for my squad.
I now also have to contend with injuries, form fluctuations, and a tight budget.
For Brown, thats when the app truly proves its worth.
ChatFPL will be an informed source to talk to about your situation.
Its a fair point: my friends are now my rivals.
They can no longer be trusted.
Even if they could, their advice would be questionable at best.
I take a stab at instead build a relationship with my tools.
I seek their advice, ask them questions, listen to their views.
The final decisions, however, are mine alone.
My bots are closer to assistant coaches than dictatorial managers.
Fix endorses my approach.
AI does seem to be sucking the fun out of FPL for certain people, says Brown.
Before, it was open for interpretation there wasnt a right and wrong way to play.
We want to go back to that.
At times, the models can even expand the constraints of our consciences.
Paradoxically, the AI will often think outside the box.
The human element
FPL players increasingly follow the same templates shared online by dubious experts.
They drain our individuality and creativity.
AI provides an escape from their restraints.
Theres a parallel here to a broader divide in AI.
On one side are thealgorithmic biasesthat misidentify people, reinforce stereotypes, and amplify discrimination.
On the other side are the systems that expand our horizons.
A shining example of the latter is DeepMindsAlphaGo.
The model developed radical strategies for a fiendishly complex board game, stunning world champions with unorthodox moves.
AI can do the same for FPL.
One memorable example for Thomas was vouching for Jean-Philippe Mateta.
At the time, the Crystal Palace striker was an unfashionable choice.
Neither he nor his team were in form.
But his underlying data was promising.
He would also soon benefit from two top creative players rejoining his team.
Most importantly, he cost a fraction of the leagues established strikers.
The model astutely identified a bargain.
Mateta promptly embarked on a lengthy scoring streak that propelled Palace up the table.
Struggling sides have deployed the techniques to unearth diamonds in the rough.
Human experts will often overlook these players.
Yet data shows theyre undervalued, abnormally skilled, or just need a helping hand.
Such oversights are common in fantasy football.
A lot of FPL players use the eye test, Thomas says.
But the AI doesnt care about that.
Over time, the models will also add new personal touches.
Fix plans to customise advice around our strategic styles, risk appetites, and football preferences.
Before long, AI could tailor the tips for winning my mini-league.
I could ban the mere mention of Spurs.
I could also build a richer relationship with my AI partner.
Were exploring being able to talk to it verbally, says Brown.
A comfort, perhaps, for the lonely.
But one that wont dispel the fears about AI replacing human roles in FPL.
Not just strategically, but also socially.
Still, thats of little concern to me.
Im leading my mini-league and no-one knows about my AI assistant.
kindly dont tell them my secret I have a reputation to automate.
Story byThomas Macaulay
Thomas is the managing editor of TNW.
He leads our coverage of European tech and oversees our talented team of writers.
Away from work, he e(show all)Thomas is the managing editor of TNW.
He leads our coverage of European tech and oversees our talented team of writers.
Away from work, he enjoys playing chess (badly) and the guitar (even worse).
