Euro 2016 – Guide to the UEFA McDonald’s Game

The domestic season may not quite be over but we’re already focussing our thoughts on the upcoming Euro 2016 tournament. The month-long competition, which comprises of 24 teams, kicks off on June 10 in France and we’ve already set up a Fantasy Football Scout league in the official UEFA game for those Fantasy managers looking to while away the summer months until the Premier League action gets back underway on Saturday, August 13.

Over the next few weeks we plan to roll out articles on all 24 of the participants, assessing the regular starters and key targets to pinpoint for our squads. To kick off our series of summer articles on Euro 2016, we cast an eye over the ruleset involved.

Most readers will be familiar with the machinations of the UEFA game. It’s basically the same format as their official Champions League game and involves many of the rules that are typically associated with the Fantasy Premier League (FPL) game.

Squad Selection

To get your squad up and running, you must select a squad of 15 players; similar to FPL this comprises two goalkeepers, five defenders, five midfielders and three forwards. In the group stages, only three players from any given team are allowed but, as the tournament unfolds, this increases to four players per team for the round of 16, five for the Quarter Finals, six in the Semis and eight in the Final.

In terms of formations, it’s similar to Fantasy Premier League – aside from picking a keeper, you need to have at least three defenders, two midfielders and one forward for your starting XI. Essentially, then, you can pick from 3-4-3, 3-5-2, 4-3-3, 4-4-2, 4-5-1, 5-2-3, 5-3-2 and 5-4-1 set-ups.

Fantasy managers are handed 100m Euros to construct their initial squads, with another five million Euros added to our budgets once the group stages have passed.

Meanwhile, player prices will only change once the group stages have passed. We contacted those running the game earlier today, who explained that on-pitch displays, and not market forces, will affect those fluctuations in cost:

“The player price change is dependent only on their performances during the tournament and not on ownership levels. The new prices will be set through an automated process”.

It’s also worth noting that you will get the full profit from a transfer – if you buy someone for 5.0 and sell him when he reaches 5.2, you would gain the full 0.2, rather than the familiar 0.1 in FPL.

Substitutions

Although we can construct our benches to utilise the autosubs option, the official UEFA offering favours a hands-on approach and allows Fantasy managers to make changes to our line-ups between Gamedays in any given Matchday.

If one of your starters doesn’t perform or isn’t selected, then, you can swap them out and bring in a replacement off the bench later in the Matchday. It’s also worth bearing in mind that we’re likely to get an idea on the lineups from the early kick-offs each day, affording Fantasy managers the chance to hold fire until the teams are announced before subbing out any under-achievers.

Similarly, when it comes to selecting captains, you have the option to “stick or twist” on each Gameday – by removing the armband from any player, though, you will lose their double points. The above scenarios only apply if the player in question is not sent off, however; any player who receives a red card cannot be subbed out of your starting XI – the situation can be all the more frustrating if your captain happens to be the man dismissed.

The ability to switch armbands from one day to the next not only makes the matches more entertaining to follow, it also underlines the fact that a balance is required by Fantasy managers in order to take advantage of the rule. A strong captain choice from Groups A through to F is an essential part of the planning, then.

A quick glance at the scheduling shows that Matchday 1 is played over five Gamedays, whilst Matchdays 2 and 3 are both comprised of four Gamedays.

The number of fixtures per Gameday also varies. Matchday 1 is broken down by one, three, three, three and two respectively, whereas the final two Gamedays in Matchday 3 hand us four fixtures on each occasion, for example. Again, that’s another factor worth considering when structuring our squads.

Scoring Points

You can find a full list of the rules here, though as mentioned, most are very similar to FPL. Keepers and defenders who play at least 60 minutes and earn a clean sheet are awarded six points, whilst keepers earn one extra point for every three saves. It’s three points for an assist regardless of position, whilst midfielders receive five points for scoring a goal and forwards pick up just four – you get the idea.

There are, however, a handful of rules unfamiliar to FPL managers.

A player will earn two extra points if he is brought down for a penalty, regardless of whether the spot-kick is converted. Conversely, any player who brings down an opponent and causes a penalty is a point worse off for doing so.

No assist is given if a player is deemed to have created his own scoring opportunity via a solo run or dribble prior to finding the net.

Transfers

Fantasy managers are afforded one transfer at the end of each Matchday to freshen up their squads – make any more changes and it’ll cost you four points per alteration.

After the deadline for Round 3 passes, Fantasy managers can then make an unlimited number of changes prior to the Round of 16 kicking off. A further four are afforded for the Quarter Finals, followed by four for the Semi Finals and four more for the Final.

We’re also handed an extra Wildcard, which can be played any time during the tournament. Essentially, though, this is best wielded during the Group stages, as we can start our squads from scratch after that point anyway.

In previous iterations, some Fantasy managers used it just after Round 1, focusing their initial squad selection on the first batch of fixtures before selecting a more rounded set of players thereafter.

Others opted to press the button prior to Round 3 as, by then, some teams had already qualified. Many of the nations that have already made it through may well be more susceptible to rotation than others – Fantasy managers could transfer out players from those teams and ship in assets from sides who have to go all-out for wins in order to progress, safe in the knowledge they can draft their favourites back in prior to the knock-out stages.

Scout League

Finally, a reminder that our coverage for the tournament will also feature updates of the official Scout League, as we keep you abreast of the runners and riders as action unfolds. If you haven’t joined already, the code is 01011DGH.