The auction is the most competitive way to play. Everyone starts with the same money and an empty squad, and every player you end up with is one somebody else did not. It rewards patience, nerve and a plan. This guide explains how it works and how to come out of it with the best team in the room.
How an auction is structured
The squad is bought one position at a time. In a fast season that is eleven positions: a goalkeeper, a back four, three midfielders and three forwards. A full squad has twenty, including a bench. The order of positions is shuffled, so the auction might open with the goalkeeper or with the striker, and nobody knows what comes next.
For each position there is one player per manager, drawn from every league in the game. Each player has a tier.
- Stars are the elite, usually rated in the high eighties and above.
- Solid players are reliable first-teamers in the low eighties.
- Bargains are cheaper players in the seventies.
The mix of tiers is random from position to position. One position might have two stars and no bargains, the next might have nothing but bargains. The players also come up in a random order, so you never know whether the next one is the star.
Opening bids and the hammer
Each player is shown for a few seconds before bidding opens. The opening bid is half his market value. In an open auction, every bid must be at least €1M above the current price, everyone sees it, and the hammer falls five seconds after the last bid. You cannot bid against yourself: once you lead, you wait for someone to outbid you.
Once you win a player, you sit out the rest of that position. And if you pass on everyone, you are handed a genuinely poor player for it at the end. Sitting out is a gamble that costs you.
Plan your money before the first bid
The single biggest mistake is spending half the budget in the first two positions. Divide your budget by the number of positions and treat that as your average, not your limit. Then decide where you want to be above average and where you are happy below it.
A sensible plan for a fast season looks like this.
- Pick three or four positions where you want a star. Strikers and central midfielders change games most.
- Accept solid players in most other positions.
- Be ready to take a bargain or two where it hurts least, often at full-back or a second centre-back.
Whatever you do not spend becomes your transfer budget for the season, so saving money is never completely wasted.
Read the room
Watch the managers panel. It shows who still needs the current position and, unless the host has hidden it, how much money each manager has left. A rival with a big budget and no striker yet will bid hard for the next forward. A rival who already bought his striker cannot bid at all.
When to bid and when to wait
- Bid early on a star you really want. Jumping in quickly signals intent, and a strong first bid can scare off a cautious rival.
- Wait when a solid player comes up and you suspect a star is still to come in the same position. The queue shows how many players are left, even though it does not show who.
- Snipe carefully. Bidding in the last second can work, but the hammer is unforgiving and a slow connection can cost you the player.
The last players in a position
When a position is nearly done, the maths changes. If there are fewer players left than managers who still need one, somebody is going to end up with the scraps. That is when prices rise. If you are still empty-handed late in a position, it is usually worth paying a little more than you would like rather than risking a poor player.
After the auction
When the last position is sold, everyone sees the final podium: whose squad rates highest, who spent most and who landed the biggest name. Then the season begins with exactly the eleven or twenty players you bought, placed in the positions you bought them for. Your leftover money is your transfer budget, and the market opens at kick-off.
A short checklist
- Divide the budget by the positions before you start.
- Choose your star positions in advance.
- Watch who still needs the position, and how much they have.
- Never pass on everyone unless you are sure.
- Keep something back: the transfer market is still to come.