38 points. That is the margin by which Erik Ibsen, a 23-year-old Danish medical student, finished clear of more than 11 million rivals to win the 2024-25 Fantasy Premier League title — in his first ever season playing the game.

Ibsen only entered FPL because his sister wanted help with a work league. He set up his own team out of what he describes as sibling rivalry. What followed was, by his own admission, "completely insane."

How the margin grew on the final day

Going into the last day of the Premier League season, Ibsen held a 21-point lead at the top of the overall standings. That cushion nearly doubled to 38 points after his captain, Manchester United skipper Bruno Fernandes, delivered a 14-point haul. Picking the right captain at the right moment is often what separates FPL title contenders from also-rans, and that decision proved decisive.

The win was not without effort. Ibsen told BBC Newsbeat he was spending four or five hours a day on his Excel sheet during the final week of the season — all while an exam loomed three weeks away that he admitted he had not yet started revising for.

No AI, just a very large spreadsheet

FPL has spawned an entire content industry, and a growing number of managers have been turning to artificial intelligence tools for help with transfers and captaincy calls. Ibsen went the other way. He says anyone looking back at his early-season decisions — which included captaining defender James Tarkowski and goalkeeper David Raya (moves he now regards as mistakes) — can tell immediately that no algorithm was directing his choices.

His reasoning for rejecting AI was practical rather than principled. He felt the tools he encountered failed to account for context. He specifically cited the final weekend, when Manchester City and Arsenal players were still being flagged as strong picks despite both clubs having nothing left to play for. Ibsen was sceptical and planned accordingly.

"It didn't really take account for scenarios," he said.

A childhood dream, of sorts

Ibsen is an Everton supporter who has never attended a Premier League match in person. Among the prizes for winning FPL is a seven-night UK trip that includes VIP hospitality at two Premier League fixtures next season. He is particularly looking forward to a visit to Everton's Hill Dickinson Stadium — his first live top-flight game.

He says his childhood dream was to be a football manager, and that winning FPL gives him a feeling of being a football expert, even if, as he puts it, he is "not really" one in any formal sense. His statistical framework came from his medical education rather than any football-specific training.

Proper celebrations are on hold until his exams are finished. He has, however, already planned an appreciation post for the players who contributed most across the campaign — Bournemouth midfielder Alex Scott's 12-point return against Arsenal in April gets a specific mention.

What this means for FPL culture

The result is a useful counter-narrative at a time when the game is increasingly framed as a competition between data pipelines. A first-time player with a spreadsheet, a medical student's analytical instincts, and the willingness to ignore conventional wisdom on the final weekend has just beaten the field outright. The market for FPL tips and AI tools will not shrink because of one result, but Ibsen's win is a reminder that contextual judgement still carries weight.

For the record, FPL operates on a £100m squad budget across 15 players, with points awarded based on real-world on-pitch performance each gameweek.

FAQs

Frequently asked

Who won Fantasy Premier League 2024-25?
Erik Ibsen, a 23-year-old Danish medical student, won the 2024-25 FPL overall title. He finished 38 points ahead of the next-best manager, with Bruno Fernandes as his captain on the final day contributing a decisive 14-point haul.
How many people play Fantasy Premier League?
FPL claims to have more than 11 million players competing in the overall rankings each season, making it the UK's most popular fantasy football competition.
What are the prizes for winning FPL?
The overall FPL winner receives a seven-night UK break that includes VIP hospitality at two Premier League matches the following season, among other prizes.