In this blog, we take a look at the best FPL GW1 drafts for the 2026/27 FPL season with pros and cons for each draft. Our idea is to enable you to look at multiple GW1 drafts and then arrive at your ideal draft to begin the season.
Link to all our 2026/27 Pre-Season articles including all team pre-season friendly updates, best drafts, fixture analysis, position-wise analysis, differentials, players to target, budget enablers and more. Completely free to access as well!
Teams to Target with good fixtures (GW1-5):
- Leeds United
- Liverpool
- Manchester City
- Brentford
- Everton
- Manchester United
- Tottenham Hotspur
- Arsenal
Teams with tough fixtures (GW1-5):
- Newcastle United
- Fulham
- Hull City
- Ipswich Town
- Nottingham Forest
- Sunderland
- Bournemouth
- Coventry City
Further Read: FPL Fixture Analysis for The 2026/27 FPL Season | PL Fixtures
2026/27 FPL Season ~ Best FPL GW1 Drafts
FPL GW1 Draft 1- Haaland + Bruno Draft
- This draft goes heavy in attack with Haaland + Bruno as the premiums, along with Rogers, Joao Pedro, and Szoboszlai.
GKs & Defenders:
- Pickford is the set-and-forget keeper in this draft. The Everton GK is very reliable, and the Toffees have a good run of fixtures as well to start the season.
- Arsenal defence is a on brainer and we have gone for Mosquera in this draft. Saliba is out for a while, and Timber has had a minor operation this summer, which bodes well for Mosquera’s minutes as he can play both CB/RB roles.
- Ola Aina at 4.5 million offers really good value, Forest are not in Europe this season, and under Glasner, Aina will be playing in a wing-back role similar to Munoz at Palace when Glasner was managing the South London club.
- Gvardiol was not amongst the FPL options last season, but that could change under Maresca, who considers Gvardiol, Phil Foden and Erling Haaland as three central pillars. At 5.5 million, he offers a cheap entry into Man City defence. Man City fans believe he’ll slot in at CB and partner with Guehi as the 1st choice CB pairing in the long run.
- Jacquet is our 4th defender in the draft, Liverpool’s new CB is only 5.0 million, which is very cheap for a Liverpool defender. The only concern is that he’s been injured since Feb and has not featured in pre-season games yet, as Liverpool are taking it easy with him. Following the win against Wrexham on 29th July, Iraola did mention that Ryan [Gravenberch], Florian [Wirtz], for Alex [Isak], for even Jeremy Jacquet to have their first minutes against Leeds (Friendly on 3rd August). If he’s fit, we believe he’s a definite starter now that Konate is gone and Gomez is injured.
- Bobby Thomas is the 4.0 million defender taking the 5th defender spot. Coventry are the best amongst the promoted teams, and he rotates well with Aina as well.
Fantasy Football Hub(FFHUB) Free AI Team Rating Tool
Attackers:
- Haaland and Bruno are non-negotiables in this draft. The duo finished first and 2nd respectively, for most points last season and have got good fixtures, plus they are their team’s talisman as well.
- Since Carrick took over, Bruno registered 129 FPL points in just 17 games. No player scored more during the period. This can be evidently seen in the heatmap above, left is Bruno’s heatmap under Carrick, and right is his heatmap before Carrick (under Amorin & Fletcher). Under Carrick, he hit DEFCON only once as his role became more attacking.
- Szoboszlai is a steal at 7.0 million, the Liverpool midfielder had 10+ goal involvements last season (6 goals, 7 assists) and got 20 DEFCON points as well. He created 78 chances last season, which was only behind Bruno. Now with Salah gone, Szoboszlai could even be on penalties.
- Rogers was a bit of a frustrating asset to own last season when he blanked when managers held him for long periods and started hauling immediately when many managers sold him. But the talent is undeniable, and he’ll be an integral part of Xabi Alonso’s Chelsea attack.
- Ampadu (£5.5m) and Sangare (£5.0m) are the cheap midfielders in this draft. Ampadu is a DEFCON beat, averaging 12.11 DEFCONs per 90 with a hit rate of 54% last season. Sangare too offers decent DEFCON potential, averaging 10.4 DEFCONs per start with a 34% hit rate.
- Joao Pedro surprisingly did not make it to Brazil’s WC squad, which meant a good summer break for the Chelsea attacker who has come back fresh & hungry for goals. He even picked up a hat trick and an assist in just 30 mins in Chelsea’s friendly win against Western Sydney Wanderers. Chelsea have got the fixtures, and JP is a no-brainer option.
- Igor Jesus is the 3rd forward, he’s been in good form this pre-season and has picked up four goals in four games. He also ended last season strongly with 4 goals, 3 assists in the last 10 games. Forest should be more attacking under Glasner, so he makes our draft.
Note: To avoid repetition and keep the blog not too long, we’ll be only covering new players in subsequent drafts.
Further Read: Best £5.0-5.5 Million FPL Defenders for the 2026/27 FPL Season
FPL GW1 Draft 2- Haaland + Bruno + Palmer Draft
- This draft goes heavy in midfield with both Palmer and Bruno.
- Kinsky is the goalkeeper in this draft, Spurs have made some great defensive signings, with Van Hecke and Senesi all coming in, and we expect Spurs defence to improve under De Zerbi. A 4.5 million starting GK from a big six club is very rare!
- Baalard has got good DEFCON potential, having scored DC points in 14 of his 29 appearances last season. His 1.27 DC Points per start is the 6th best amongst defenders.
- The Black Cats are also good defensively and have a good run of fixtures to begin their season. Fun fact: Ballard was last season’s highest-scoring player in GW1, scoring 17 points. Let’s hope he repeats the same once again!
- Guehi is the safer Man City defender in this draft, alternatively, if you’re not keen on Guehi and looking for an attacking option, you can go for O’Reilly.
- Vuskovic is the differential in this draft, Brighton’s new signing scored 6 goals and got 2 assists in the Bundesliga last season (5.68 xGI) and averaged 12.1 DEFCONs/90. If you’re not keen on Vuskovic, you could go for Kadioglu, who’s 0.5 cheaper.
- The last defender in this draft is popular 4.0 million defender, Van Ewijk. He’s got a bit of attacking potential, having recorded 8 assists and created 10 big chances in the Championship last season.
- In midfield, we have got Palmer, who had an injury-hit last season, which resulted in him not making it to the World Cup. However, with a long break & a full pre-season under his belt, Palmer would be keen to get going. We all know how explosive Palmer can be when he’s in form, and he’s a really good penalty taker as well.
- Enzo Le Fee at 6.0 million is the enabler that’s helping us afford Palmer + Bruno in this draft. He scored 147 points last season with 6 goals, 6 assists, 11.07 xGI, 16 DC points, finishing with more points than the likes of Cunha, Tavernier, Palmer, Cherki, Gakpo, Ndiaye, Wirtz, Schade, and Sarr last season. He’s got a share of penalties, corners and free kicks too so we are bullish on him as an FPL option to begin the 26/27 season.
Enzo Le Fee on playing through the middle and scoring his goal vs Liverpool in pre-season: “Since the end of last season, I’ve been playing in the same position, so I think it helps me a lot to always be in the same position. I like to be in the middle, have the ball and control the tempo. I want to be one of the best players in this position, but I have to work even more than I already do. It’s always nice to score. I don’t always score a lot but I want to score more this season. It starts with the first game. It’s always good and it was a good goal as well so it was always nice.”
- Gross (£5.5m) is the next enabler on this draft. After coming back to Brighton in January, Gross has averaged 4.38 points per/90, 8.1 DC/90, and has been on set pieces. Now with Welbeck leaving, he could be on penalties too.
- Brobbey is the £ 6.0 million forward in this draft, he picked up 7 goals and 2 assists in the PL last season and went on to have a great World Cup, scoring three goals. Sunderland have got good fixtures, and he could be a great enabler in your GW1 team.
Further Read: Best £4.0 Million FPL Defenders for 2026/27 FPL Season
FPL GW1 Draft 3- Haaland + Bruno + Gabriel Draft
- This draft has the expensive forward, midfielder, and defender along with differentials in other positions.
- Verbruggen is our GK in this draft, the Brighton goalie kept 10 clean sheets and finished with 106 saves, which was the 5th highest last season. The Seagulls fixtures are okayish, and if you’re keen on a set-and-forget GK, then Verbruggen could be a great choice!
- Gabriel needs no justification, he became the 2nd highest-scoring defender in FPL history with 209 points despite missing six games last season. Some managers might feel he’s expensive, but he offers points through different avenues (clean sheets, goal threat, DEFCONs), which justifies his price tag.
- Luke Shaw & Van Hecke rotate well and are also guaranteed starters. Shaw featured in all 38 games for Man United last season and has good CS potential & a decent goal threat. Van Hecke is pretty good from a DEFCON perspective, and if you can rotate them correctly, you’ll have:
- 1/15 games vs Last season Top 6
- 3/15 games vs Last Season 7th-12th placed teams
- 11/15 games vs Promoted Teams & Last season 13th-17th placed teams
- Robinson and Diop are the other 4.5 and 4.0 million defenders in this draft. Robinson had an injury-hit last season but had a stellar 24/25 season in which he registered 10 assists. He’s fully fit now, had a good World Cup, and will be looking to have a good season. Diop had a great World Cup for Morocco and has now joined Ipswich Town from Fulham and is expected to be a starting CB for the Tractor Boys.
- Slater is the 4.5 midfielder in this draft, he’s one of the few options in this price point that could regularly start. He won the Hull City player of the season award and averaged 10.16 DEFCONs/90 in the Championship last season. Do note, Hull City are bringing in quite a few players so Slater could lose his spot in the starting 11. Watch out for transfer news & friendly updates.
- Gibbs White had a strong 2nd half of last season, from GW20-38, he scored 124 points, which was the 2nd highest amongst all players, only behind Bruno Fernandes. He too missed out on a WC spot and has had a long break, Forest under Glasner will not have European competitons too, which bodes well for MGW as an FPL option.
- Foden is in this draft as a differential. The Man City attacker had a mixed last season, except for a small run of games in December, he was largely underperforming, which resulted in missing out on a WC spot. However, we all know Foden is a streaky player, and he has the potential to go big. Man City fixtures are pretty good as well for those wanting to punt on Foden!
- Solanke is the other 6.0 million forward, the Spurs striker hardly featured last season due to injury issues. He’s now back fully fit and will be looking to have a good season in front of goal. At 6.0 million, he offers great value for a froward playing for a big six team.
FPL GW1 Draft 4- The DEFCON/Big at the Back Draft
- This draft goes heavy on DEFCON players and also has 0.5 in the bank.
- Tarkowski averaged 10.2 DEFCONs/90 and had a DEFCON hit rate of 60%, Everton defence is pretty solid, and Tarkowski is a set-and-forget option.
- Van Dijk’s DEFCON numbers might not be as high as Tarkowski, but it’s still impressive. The Liverpool CB averages 9.2 DEFCONs/90 with a DEFCON hit rate of 42%. He’s also pretty good from an attacking perspective for a CB, having registered 7 attacking returns last season.
- Anderson was undoubtedly the DEFCON goat last season, registering 52 points from DEFCON alone with a hit rate of 70% along with 13.8 DEFCON/start. He’s now moved to Man City, and with Rodri undergoing a small surgery, his minutes are not in doubt. At 6.5 million, he still offers incredible value.
- Xhaka is also a DEFCON beast with 11.23 DEFCON/90 last season, which helped him finish with a respectable 123 points. If you’re not impressed with Xhaka, you can use the extra 0.5 million in the bank to get Le Fee.
- With Welbeck leaving, there’s a potential for a 5.5 million starting forward from Brighton, Rutter is a placeholder, as him and Kostoulas are both 5.5 million. A few more pre-season games will hopefully give us clarity on who’s the starting CB.
- DCL is the 6.0 million forward in this draft, he picked up 142 points from 14 goals and 2 assists last season. Leeds have a decent run of games to begin the season, and DCL is also on penalties as well, which makes him an exciting option.
- Yates is a placeholder 4.5 million midfielder in this draft, alternatively, Slater (Hull City) is also an option who has the potential to start regularly.
Further Read: Best Premium Defenders for 2026/27 season based on Stats and Fixtures
FPL GW1 Draft 5- GW2 Bench Boost Draft
- Coventry playing Hull City in GW2 at home offers FPL managers an option to load up on cheap assets from the Sky Blue side and then use bench boost in GW2, hoping they win with a clean sheet.
- Note: You could have 4 Coventry players on Bench Boost GW2 if you add Rushworth to your team before his move from Brighton to Coventry is finalised. But you’ll have to use your 1st transfer to remove one of the four Coventry players, so do keep that in mind if you’re planning to do this.
- Ajer is preferred as the 4.5 million defender as he’s now set to start the season at centre-back after Van den Berg’s injury. He achieved defcon in 67% of games when playing at CB as part of a back four last season. Data from @chewieFPL.
- Fellow Brentford player, Schade, is in as the £ 6.0 million midfielder, but he’s now been linked with a move to Roma. If he leaves/you’re not keen on him, then you could go for Le Fee or even new signing Sangare.
- Mbeumo is in this draft along with Bruno, a double-up on Man United attackers with Hull City(A) in GW1 is sort of a differential strategy, with Bruno alone having close to 50% ownership.
GW2 Bench Boost Projection:
Projection & predicted points via FFHUB’s My Team rating
Fantasy Football Hub(FFHUB) Free AI Team Rating Tool
FPL GW1 Draft 6- GW1 Bench Boost Draft
- Bench Boost GW1 is another option for managers who want to get rid of the 1st bench boost chip early in the season.
- In this GW1 Bench Boost draft, we have gone for Kinsky, Hume, Gross and Aina on the bench for a total of 19.0 Million.
Further Read: FPL Rotational Pairs and Combinations for 2026/27 FPL Season
FPL GW1 Draft 7- No Haaland Draft
- In the last draft of the blog, we look at a no-Haaland draft, which allows us to go all in midfield with Bruno, Palmer, Foden, Szoboszlai and Gibbs White.
Further reads from ALLABOUTFPL ahead of FPL GW1 of the 2026/27 FPL Season
FPL Basics:
2026/27 FPL Season – New Rules & Changes | What’s New in FPL?
What is Team ID in FPL? | How to Get a Low FPL Team ID for the 2026/27 Season
Best & Funny FPL Team Names for 2026/27 PL Season
Must Read Articles:
Best FPL GW1 Drafts for the 26/27 FPL Season with Pros & Cons
FPL Chip Strategy Guide- Best Windows to Play Free Hit, Wildcard, Triple Captain and Bench Boost
Ultimate DEFCON Analysis: Top Players & Best Opponents to Target
FPL Rotational Pairs and Combinations for 2026/27 FPL Season
Eight Simple FPL Tips to Secure a High Rank | 26/27 Season
FPL Fixture Analysis for 2026/27 Season- Teams with Best and Worst fixtures
Five Must Own Players in GW1 for FPL 2026/27 season
AK’s FPL First Draft & Team Reveal | 3x Top 5K Finishes
Position Analysis:
GKs and Defenders Series:
Best FPL Goalkeepers to Target based on Stats and Fixtures
Best £4.0 Million FPL Defenders for 2026/27 FPL Season
Best Premium Defenders for 2026/27 season based on Stats and Fixtures
Best £5.0-5.5 Million FPL Defenders for the 2026/27 FPL Season
FPL Rotational Pairs and Combinations for 2026/27 FPL Season
Midfielders Series:
Best FPL Premium Midfielders(8.0-12.0) for 2026/27 FPL season
Best Mid-Price FPL Midfielders for the 26/27 Season | £6.5 to 7.5M
Best Value for Money Midfielders for 2026/27 season
Forwards Series:
Best FPL Budget Forwards (£4.5 – £6.0 Million) | 26/27 FPL Season
Best £6m Forwards Comparison for the 2026/27 FPL Season
If you’re new to FPL, here is a link to all our FPL Beginners Guide including FPL Beginner’s Guide- How to play?, Bench boost, Team value, Triple captain, Effective ownership, Price Changes, Free Hit, Bonus Points, and more.
Link to all our 2026/27 Pre-Season articles including all position-wise analysis, team previews, fixture analysis, position-wise analysis, and more. Completely free to access as well!
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