Mini-Leagues: draft against your friends
Mini-Leagues turn a shared draft into a recurring competition with friends. Everyone starts a round with the same squad sequence and settings, then the host reveals the XIs and starts the simulations that produce the round standings.
Create a league and invite your group
Sign in with Google or Apple, open Mini-Leagues and create a named league or join using its code. The host can share an invitation link, taking friends to that league. Each group holds up to 20 human members, and a round can begin once at least two members have joined.
Choose the group before starting the first round. Membership is open when a league is fresh or its season has finished; the roster stays fixed during an active season. You can be in one active Mini-League at a time. Agree a suitable schedule with your friends so the opening round begins when everyone expects it.
A Mini-League season runs for three, five or ten rounds, with five as the default. Each round is a fresh draft and a full run of the selected mode. Treat the season length as the number of separate drafting contests your group wants to compare. Read how to play if anyone needs the shared spin and placement process first.
Choose the mode and options
A league can use Classic 38-0-0, World Cup Legends or Treble Chasers. The host selects the formation, Casual or Hardcore difficulty, and Mixed or Elite opposition. These are shared league settings, so every member fills the same set of roles against the selected style of opposition.
The six formations are 4-3-3, 4-4-2, 4-2-3-1, 3-5-2, 5-3-2 and 4-5-1. Casual supplies three re-spins per draft; Hardcore uses each offer and favours stronger squad tiers in the draw. The formations guide helps a group understand the recruitment demands before committing to a shape.
Classic leagues can also use mid-season transfers. That option divides each simulated league campaign into its opening 19 matches and its return 19 matches, with a transfer window between them. It gives the group a second selection decision after seeing how the original XI performed.
From a shared seed to the reveal
The host starts a round, seating the league’s members in its draft roster. The shared seed determines the squad sequence for everyone. Your picks and re-spin decisions shape the XI you submit, and using a re-spin advances along that common sequence. Managers can therefore produce different teams from the same starting offers.
Players receive an hour from the round’s start to draft. The host can lock earlier when everyone has submitted, or after the hour once their own team is drafted. At the reveal, completed XIs become visible and CPU sides fill the remaining places to create a field of 20.
The host then starts the simulations. Each entry plays its own run of the chosen mode, using the shared draft settings and its own match simulation. A round’s table compares those completed run scores. For direct matches between two drafted sides, Head to Head provides a separate series format described on the game modes page.
How the round and season tables work
Round standings rank all 20 entries by run score, including the CPU sides. That score reflects the selected mode: league success in Classic, tournament progress in World Cup Legends, or trophies and league results in Treble Chasers. The scoring guide explains why the mode’s headline objective matters when comparing XIs.
The season table tracks human members’ average round placing and round wins. A round win improves the season score, and lower season scores rank higher. Placings include CPU entries, so beating every human friend can still leave work to do against the full round field. Consistent high finishes and outright round wins both matter.
The mid-season transfer window
With Classic transfers enabled, the first simulation stops after 19 matches. Each manager receives two transfer squad offers and can sign up to two replacements, taking one from each offered squad. New players replace selected positions in the existing XI and must fit an eligible role.
The transfer window lasts one hour. The host can continue when all human entries have confirmed their choices or the hour has elapsed. The second half uses the updated XI, while the opening results remain part of the campaign. CPU sides also receive transfer decisions. Inspect your first-half results and existing placements before choosing replacements.
Eight tips for league play
- Read the shared settings first. Know which mode, formation and opposition your group selected. A draft aimed at a trophy run asks different questions from one focused on repeated league wins.
- Draft against your remaining vacancies. The shared squad order gives everyone comparable decisions. Look for the best useful fit in each offer, preserving flexible positions for later squads.
- Spend re-spins selectively. Taking a sound natural starter can preserve an allowance for an awkward final vacancy. Judge the offer by what your XI needs at that moment.
- Protect midfield balance. Midfield contributes to attack and defence, so a capable central selection supports several parts of the simulation across any of the available league modes.
- Submit within the drafting window. Check the round’s start time and complete your XI promptly. This lets the host reveal when the group is ready and keeps everyone involved.
- Use the reveal to learn. Compare friends’ placements and effective role choices. Similar squad offers can produce different balances, giving your group concrete decisions to discuss after the result.
- Transfer for a measurable improvement. Look at the replaced role’s quality and fit. Strengthening a weak keeper, defender or midfielder can help more than another small attacking upgrade.
- Review the season trend. Compare average places and round wins alongside individual scores. A spectacular round is valuable, while repeated strong drafts give you more chances to improve both measures.
Finishing, archiving and playing again
After the final round, the league becomes finished. The host can begin another season with the same group or archive the league, preserving its rounds and table. Archived leagues can also be revived for another season. Agree the next step with your group, then use the Mini-Leagues hub to return to your competition.