38-0 tips
How to go 38-0, from how the engine actually works.
Play 38-0Every tip here comes from the 38-0 engine itself. Most are about one number: your team rating. It's played against every club in your table, so every point counts. The same rules run World Cup 7-0 and 38-0 Multiplayer.
1. Keep your seasons close together
Your XI loses up to 7 points of team rating for era spread: the gap between your oldest and newest season, plus how scattered the rest are. Inside six years it's about 0.2. Ten players from 2015-16 to 2024-25 cost 0.6. Add one from 1967-68 and it's 6.6.
Want zero? Choose Era play and set the range to a single season. Only your starting XI counts, not your subs.
2. Your formation decides who matters
Your rating is the average of defence and attack. Defence is 72% your back line and keeper, 28% midfield. Attack is 72% your forwards, 28% midfield. The fewer players in a line, the more each one counts.
| Formation | Each forward | Each midfielder | Each defender and the keeper |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4-3-3, 4-3-2-1 | 12% | 9% | 7% |
| 4-4-2 | 18% | 7% | 7% |
| 4-2-3-1 | 9% (front four) | 14% (the two holding) | 7% |
| 3-5-2 | 18% | 6% | 9% |
| 3-4-3 | 12% | 7% | 9% |
| 5-3-2 | 18% | 9% | 6% |
| 4-5-1, 4-1-4-1 | 36% | 6% | 7% |
A 4-5-1 makes your lone striker 36% of your rating. Great with a 90 up front, a disaster without one. You choose the formation before the draft, so you choose the risk too. Opponents are rated in your formation as well.
3. Play people in their position
A player in one of his listed positions keeps his full rating. Anywhere else he loses some. A full-back on the other flank loses 5, a winger on the other wing 6, a centre-back at full-back 7, a striker out wide 7, a winger in central midfield 10, a centre-back in midfield 11. An outfield player in goal, or a keeper outfield, loses 30.
Turn ratings on. When you select a player, every open slot shows what he'd be worth there.
4. Pick a manager who fits
A manager adds his rating minus 82, divided by 3. He loses 3 rating if his preferred formation isn't yours, and 2 if you have none of his club's players. An 88 manager who fits adds 2. A 70 costs you 4 before any penalties.
His preferred shape is whichever of 4-3-3, 4-4-2, 4-2-3-1, 3-5-2 or 3-4-3 suits his own squad best. Play a 4-5-1, 4-1-4-1, 5-3-2 or 4-3-2-1 and every manager takes the 3-point hit.
5. Use a sub on the manager's club
Your five subs don't count towards your team rating. They do count for a manager's club link. If you know whose dugout you want, one bench pick from his club saves him 2.
6. Save rerolls for clubs that don't fit
Classic gives you 3 rerolls, Normal 1, Hard none. A reroll swaps the club on offer. Use it when the club has nobody good for your open positions. The league leaderboards only count Hard mode.
7. Read the odds, then swap
Before the season the bookies run 160 simulations of your XI. If the projected finish looks off, tap two players to swap them and the odds update.
8. Know the maths
A side 10 points better than its opponent wins about 72% of matches. At 20 points better it's about 92%. Win 92% of games and you'll go 38-0 about once in 25 seasons. Draws kill more runs than defeats. Full numbers on the season simulator page.
38-0 Daily is different
In 38-0 Daily your rating is the plain average of your eleven picks. Position doesn't matter and there's no manager or era penalty, so take the best player on every reel. Ratings are hidden until you pick. Use your Scout on the position you know least and your Re-roll on a weak set of three.
Every league plays by the same rules: Premier League, Championship, La Liga, Serie A, Bundesliga, Ligue 1, Eredivisie, Liga Portugal, Süper Lig, Scottish Premiership, Belgian Pro League, Brasileirão, MLS and Argentina. Chasing an Invincible season instead? See the unbeaten season game. Other formats: football draft games, all-time XI builder, games like 38-0.
FAQ
How do you go 38-0?
Build the biggest gap you can between your XI and the clubs in your table. Keep your seasons close, play everyone in position and pick a manager who fits your formation. Even then you need luck: every score is drawn at random.
Does formation matter in 38-0?
Yes. It sets how much each position counts towards your team rating, and a manager loses 3 rating if it isn't his preferred shape.
Do subs affect my team rating?
No. Only your starting XI does. A sub from a manager's club does count for that manager's club link.
What is a good team rating?
It depends on the league, because weaker leagues have lower ratings on both sides. The pre-season odds screen shows where your rating should finish against the clubs in your table.
Play next
38-0 guides: Football draft game · All-time XI builder · Season simulator · Unbeaten season game · 38-0 tips · Games like 38-0
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Last checked 26 October 2026.