World Cup 2026 MD1: Building Team Alon & Walsh

We're halfway through a match and halfway through a matchday, but it's kind of the only time we could pod before Walsh goes on vacation, so here we are vibing with a great tournament so far. Join the FML FPL World Cup Fantasy league here: https://play.fifa.com/fantasy/join-league/WQRK6PBA We're also running a discount from now until the start of the World Cup: 25% off your first month: https://www.patreon.com/1069944/join Chapters: 00:00:00 Top Chef to Kick Off Our World Cup Fiesta: Top Tier Tear Play 00:02:18 Halfway Through MD1 Recap: This Is Where Team FML FPL Is At 00:10:41 Starting with Questions from Discord: Fun Teams, Triple Defenses, Japan Differentials, and Transfer Targets 00:19:10 Back to Team Alon and Walsh: Who Replaces Montes, Which Attacker Is Out, and Are We Definitely Wildcarding in MD3 00:24:07 Germany Thrashing: Football Terrorist Leroy Sane 00:27:54 Brazil Lineup and Performance: Weird 00:31:37 Shockingly Good from the USA and Other Random Bits and Bobs from MD1 FML FPL is a fantasy football podcast hosted by Alon and Walsh, two veteran fantasy managers riding the weekly highs and lows. Expect brutally honest reactions, fantasy advice you probably shouldn’t follow, and full matchday therapy. #WorldCupFantasy #FantasyWorldCup #WCFantasy #WorldCup2026 #MD2 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Alon chats again with Anthony Dabbundo and they go group by group through the 2026 World Cup, picking out winners, dark horses, teams they like, teams they dislike, and potential Fantasy World Cup angles. Follow Anthony here: https://x.com/AnthonyDabbundo And check out his work for The Ringer here: https://www.theringer.com/creator/anthony-dabbundo Chapters: 00:00:00 Intro to Anthony and Gambling Disclaimer 00:03:00 World Cup Bets with the Most Value and World Cup Bets with the Most Fun 00:07:53 Starting with the Groups and Their Situations 00:10:24 Group A: Mexico, Czechia, South Korea, and South Africa 00:14:13 Group B: Switzerland, Canada, Bosnia, and Qatar 00:17:52 Group C: Brazil, Morocco, Scotland, and Haiti 00:26:01 Group E: Germany, Ecuador, Ivory Coast, and Curaçao 00:33:41 Group F: Netherlands, Japan, Sweden, and Tunisia 00:37:59 Group G: Belgium, Egypt, Iran, and New Zealand 00:40:53 Group H: Spain, Uruguay, Saudi Arabia, and Cape Verde 00:43:13 Group I: France, Norway, Senegal, and Iraq 00:49:31 Group J: Argentina, Austria, Algeria, and Jordan 00:52:41 Group K: Portugal, Colombia, Congo, and Uzbekistan 00:57:20 Group L: England, Croatia, Ghana, and Panama 01:02:40 Group D: USA, Turkey, Paraguay, and Australia FML FPL is a fantasy football podcast hosted by Alon and Walsh, two veteran fantasy managers riding the weekly highs and lows. Expect brutally honest reactions, fantasy advice you probably shouldn’t follow, and full matchday therapy. #WorldCupFantasy #FantasyWorldCup #WCFantasy #WorldCup2026 #MD1 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Three days until go time!!! We sorta tried to keep things relatively on topic, but in reality we're completely all over the place, mostly focused on our combined fantasy team. World Cup Fantasy is live! Join the FML FPL league here: https://play.fifa.com/fantasy/join-league/WQRK6PBA We're also running a discount from now until the start of the World Cup: 25% off your first month: https://www.patreon.com/1069944/join Chapters: 00:00:00 Vacation Brain: We're Three Days Away from MD1, What the Hell 00:03:31 Questions from Discord Are the Launch Pads, but We Talk About Everything: Goalkeepers, Highest Scoring Teams, Chip Strategy, and Much More 00:39:10 Who Is Locked into Our MD1 Team Right Now (Subject to Change) and Some Chip Planning FML FPL is a fantasy football podcast hosted by Alon and Walsh, two veteran fantasy managers riding the weekly highs and lows. Expect brutally honest reactions, fantasy advice you probably shouldn’t follow, and full matchday therapy. #WorldCupFantasy #FantasyWorldCup #WCFantasy #WorldCup2026 #MD1 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Whether you're PFPing (playing for points) or PFVing (playing for vibes), it's time to dive headfirst into World Cup Fantasy. World Cup Fantasy is live! Join the FML FPL league here: https://play.fifa.com/fantasy/join-league/WQRK6PBA We're also running a discount from now until the start of the World Cup: 25% off your first month: https://www.patreon.com/1069944/join Chapters: 00:00:00 New USA-Style World Cup Theme Music and Welcome to World Cup Fantasy 00:01:01 World Cup Fantasy Rules and Our Interpretations: Scouting Bonus for the Win 00:20:27 Groups, Fixtures, Favorable Matchups, and Scouting Bonus Targets 00:27:18 Premium Picks and Top Teams: Brazil's Vini and Raphinha, Spain and Yamal, and Many More 00:31:54 More Players and Teams We Love, More Players and Teams We Hate, and Early Picks (Subject to Change) FML FPL is a fantasy football podcast hosted by Alon and Walsh, two veteran fantasy managers riding the weekly highs and lows. Expect brutally honest reactions, fantasy advice you probably shouldn’t follow, and full matchday therapy. #WorldCupFantasy #FantasyWorldCup #WCFantasy #WorldCup2026 #MD1 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We’re not good FPL players and we’re not having fun, so something has gone very wrong. Let’s break it down. World Cup Fantasy is live! Join the FML FPL league here: https://play.fifa.com/fantasy/join-league/WQRK6PBA Or just use the code: WQRK6PBA We’re also running a discount from now until the start of the World Cup: 25% off your first month: https://www.patreon.com/1069944/join Alon will be on The FPL Last Resort post-mortem episode on Monday: https://www.youtube.com/@fpllastresort Chapters: 00:00:00 Admin Stuff: Cup Winner, Mug Winners, World Cup Pods, and a Discount 00:03:01 Very Quick GW38 Debrief: Walsh Transferred In Someone Who Didn't Play and Alon Saved His Transfer for Next Season 00:05:38 The Forgotten GW1 Bandwagon: Reijnders and Future GW1 Punts 00:16:10 The Timing of Holding Too Long or Too Short: Bad Process 00:26:07 Are the DefCons in the Room with Us Now: Use Transfers on Midfielders and Forwards Instead 00:51:08 Capping Palmer and Capping Gyok: Pay More Attention 00:52:55 What Is the Purpose of Playing FPL and What Is the Goal of Playing FPL 01:05:48 Our Benches and Our Autosubs: Not Good 01:10:37 FPL Burnout 01:15:55 The Joao Pedro Story: Evolving Our Evaluations and the Moving Target of "Nailed Players" 01:20:47 Bench Boost GW1 01:23:22 Liverpool and Slot: Bad Management and Injuries 01:29:03 How to Deal with New Rule Changes: They Will Be Broken 01:33:54 Nerfing Pen Takers 01:40:21 Rapid Fire Notes and Things to Chew On: MGW, Teams In and Out of Europe, and Carl Rushworth FML FPL is a Fantasy Premier League podcast hosted by Alon and Walsh, two veteran FPL managers riding the weekly highs and lows. Expect brutally honest reactions, fantasy football advice you probably shouldn’t follow, and full Gameweek therapy. #FPL #FantasyPremierLeague #FPLPodcast #FantasyFootball Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Previewing what FML World Cup will look like, GW38 captaincy, the Man City situation, messy bitch Mo, some other FPL dudes, lifestyles, Attack on Titan… this is what we do. First tenish minutes of the latest Patreon episode. Listen to the full episode at https://www.patreon.com/FMLFPL #FPL #FantasyPremierLeague #FPLPodcast #Gameweek38 #GW38 #FantasyFootball Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We talk some stuff in what looks like a bit of a meh GW38 for a meh FPL season. Chapters: 00:00:00 Admin Stuff: Upcoming Schedule for This Week and Next, and Yes, We Will Be Doing Regular Fantasy World Cup Pods 00:01:25 GW37 Recap: Captain Gyok on the Bench Is a Fun Way to End the Season 00:06:35 Managerial Merry-Go-Round: Mostly Getting Us Excited for Next Season 00:16:00 Arsenal and City in FPL: Bad Picks 00:22:22 GW38 on Hard Mode: How Many Teams Will Play Starters and Have Something to Play For 00:26:21 Some Free Hit Picks 00:30:58 One Lifestyle Question Before We Go FML FPL is a Fantasy Premier League podcast hosted by Alon and Walsh, two veteran FPL managers riding the weekly highs and lows. Expect brutally honest reactions, fantasy football advice you probably shouldn’t follow, and full Gameweek therapy. #FPL #FantasyPremierLeague #FPLPodcast #Gameweek38 #GW38 #FantasyFootball Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It’s late season FPL, or, in other words, we talk a little about FPL stuff, then answer lifestyle questions and call it a day. Thanks for your support. First tenish minutes of the latest Patreon episode. Listen to the full episode at https://www.patreon.com/FMLFPL #FPL #FantasyPremierLeague #FPLPodcast #Gameweek37 #GW37 #FantasyFootball Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A little FPL as a treat, and then we get to business (lifestyle questions). Chapters: 00:00:00 GW36 Recap: Triple Captain O’Reilly, So Far Not That Good 00:06:15 The Arsenal: Who to Pick and Why to Pick Them 00:11:51 A Potpourri of Other FPL Questions: Beach Teams, Liverpool and Slot, FPL Picks, and More 00:27:50 The Pod Really Begins Here with a Lifestyle Bonanza 00:40:48 GW37 Schedule FML FPL is a Fantasy Premier League podcast hosted by Alon and Walsh, two veteran FPL managers riding the weekly highs and lows. Expect brutally honest reactions, fantasy football advice you probably shouldn’t follow, and full Gameweek therapy. #FPL #FantasyPremierLeague #FPLPodcast #Gameweek37 #GW37 #FantasyFootball Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Pretty sure we spent more time on Top Chef, some TV series, and reminiscing about old cartoons instead of FPL… But we did start with the requisite FPL stuff (Arsenal, Man City, Triple Captain, yada yada other shit), so yeah, take that. First tenish minutes of the latest Patreon episode. Listen to the full episode at https://www.patreon.com/FMLFPL #FPL #FantasyPremierLeague #FPLPodcast #Gameweek35 #GW35 #FantasyFootball Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices