New To 2025/26

Changes for the 2025/26 AUS Cricket season!

More Rounds to show off your skill!

This season, the AUS Cricket competition will feature 17 rounds (up from 11 last season), covering all 44 games of the season including the four finals games.

To keep things easy to follow, most rounds will start on Monday and Thursday, with exceptions being Rounds 1, 6, 9, 12, which differ due to the exciting addition of Double Prize Rounds and Rounds 15, 16, and 17 which make up the Finals Series.

Your squad depth will be tested but you now have more chances than ever to show off your skills! There will be more bye rounds but fewer double-game rounds, so make sure you plan out your squad early this preseason.

Double Prize Rounds

In a GameDay Squad first, some rounds this season will be marked as special Double Prize Rounds, where all prizes (packs and cash) will be doubled for all winners of these rounds.

These rounds will be Rounds 1, 5, 8, and 12, making events such as Opening Night, Boxing Day, and New Year’s Day even bigger occasions on the platform.

These rounds will not count double towards the overall seasonal standings.

More starter player cards for all coaches

This year, we’ve increased the number of starter packs new coaches receive upon sign-up as well as the number that will also be dropped to existing coaches on Starter Pack Drop Day.

Coaches will now receive 216 new Bronze players, ensuring a strong start for building Starter and Contender competition squads from Day 1, while also being able to step up into Classic with ease when ready for the challenge.

Introduction of Special Cards

For the first time, All Star Cards and Prize Cards can be played in the Classic, Challenger, and Champion competitions.

Prize Cards were awarded to our highest-performing coaches of the 2024/25 season and will once again be up for grabs this season!

All Star Cards will also arrive in packs this preseason with 15 available, representing the best returning fantasy players from the 2024/25 season.

Each competition has its own unique restrictions on how many special cards can be played — check out the full details [here].

Changes to existing competitions

As part of our ongoing commitment to improve the GameDay Squad experience, we’re updating the competition structure to make it more accessible, balanced, and strategically rewarding for all coaches, especially those just starting their journey.

These changes include:

• Updates to previous years’ salary caps for the Classic and Challenger competitions

• The introduction of a salary cap to the Champion competition

• Adjustments to the rarity limits of cards that can be played in Classic and Challenger

• Updated to special card limits

Introduction of the Contender Competition Designed specifically for newer coaches, the Contender Competition lets you compete for prizes at your own pace, without the pressure of facing seasoned veterans.

Coaches already participating in the Challenger or Champion competitions are not eligible to enter, creating a level playing field for newcomers to learn, earn rewards, and grow their fantasy skils.

But don’t be fooled, there’s still plenty of strategy involved. With a strict $6 million salary cap, how will you build your squad? Will you splash out on a Gold player, or spread your budget across a squad of Bronze and Silver talent? The choice is yours and the possibilities are endless.

Updated Player Pool

As always, the start of a new season means an updated player pool.

We expect the first player pool update for the 2025/26 season in early November, which will include all team changes, position updates, player additions, and removals.

A second update will follow in early December, ahead of the season’s start.

Prizes for rained out rounds!

No one likes seeing rounds washed out so for the 2025/26 season, GameDay Squad will be paying out the cash prizes of any washed-out or abandoned rounds to the 1st place winners of the final round (Round 17).

Make sure you step up in that season finale, as it won’t just be a big round for the final standings, it’ll also include the bonus payouts from any weather-affected rounds!