Lovro Budisin has been crowned 2024/25 Fantasy Premier League champion, winning the world title by 23 points and becoming the first Croat to claim the prize.
Budisin was 40 points ahead going into the final day, and a haul from Jarrod Bowen (£7.9m) and 20 points from his captain, Mohamed Salah (£13.6m), proved enough.
“I’m still not fully aware of what I've achieved — my emotions are all over the place, and I have no words to describe this success,” said Budisin.
“I’m proud to be able to represent a sports-loving nation, my beloved Croatia. I was born here and I'm incredibly happy that I can contribute to Croatia’s success in any way.
“Even when I entered the top 10, I still didn’t believe I was truly in the race. It wasn’t until I managed to jump into the top two that I started to think there might be a real chance."
Budisin, who has been playing FPL for five seasons, followed Sunday's matches on a tablet and two mobile phones while attending a family birthday party.
The champion identified a few risky captain choices and selling certain players at the right time as some of the key reasons for his success.
“I made a few really good decisions, like holding on to Foden, who brought in 42 points between Gameweeks 20 and 22. I also made some well-judged 50-50 calls, like picking Kiwior in Gameweek 33, even though Saliba was more expensive and considered the better option by most — but I trusted my gut."
Budisin says he never really thought about becoming FPL champion until being crowned on the final day.
“I believe that's actually the smartest approach — to enjoy the game more and play under less pressure from results.
"In the last 10 Gameweeks, all of my friends started following more closely and cheering for my players.
"This season has been a crazy ride, full of everything from sadness to joy."
Finnish manager wins FPL Cup
Finland’s Aleksi Koskelo and his team Lapaset have won the FPL Cup following a narrow two-point victory over Swedish manager Sebastian Pineda’s Bennys Redeem Team.
The all-Nordic final saw both managers captain Salah and share six players in total.
Koskelo’s decision to use his one free transfer to bring in Antoine Semenyo (£5.7m) for Eberechi Eze (£7.0m) proved decisive in securing victory. The AFC Bournemouth midfielder scored twice and earned maximum bonus as the Cherries beat Leicester City 2-0 to finish as the top-scoring player in Gameweek 38, with 16 points.
Pineda will no doubt be thinking about what may have been, especially as two of his five differentials produced returns compared to only Semenyo for Koskelo. Bowen contributed 13 points to the Swedish manager’s team and Ismaila Sarr (£5.5m) added a further nine.
The reason Pineda didn’t win is due to the four points he lost from taking a transfer hit. He will no doubt regret his decision to swap out Jean-Philippe Mateta (£7.5m) for Danny Welbeck (£5.5m). Although Sarr replaced Welbeck in Pineda’s starting XI, had he simply started Sarr and benched Mateta, he would have won.
In the end, Koskelo’s cautious approach won out, the Finnish manager (pictured below) claiming cup glory without taking a transfer hit all season.
"I am so excited to win the FPL Cup! When I first saw that my opponent took a hit to transfer in Welbeck, who didn’t play, I was quite confident I could win," said Koskelo.
"Then, after Sarr scored from his bench and Bowen's goal and assist, I had already lost all hope. Thankfully, Semenyo saved me with his two goals. I almost couldn’t believe it.
“I think I have played well all season, but I have also been incredibly lucky.
“I want to thank my wife for helping me in every coin toss decision [she doesn’t know anything about football], and also my friends for their great advice.”