What happens in Last Man Standing if everyone gets knocked out?

In a Last Man Standing, if everyone gets knocked out in the same week, the fairest answer is that nobody goes out. That's the rule we use at Champs FC. The week is voided, every player gets back the team they used that week, and the same players carry on into the next matchweek. The game keeps going until one player is left.

It's one of the most common arguments in any Last Man Standing, so here is how it works and why.

Why it comes up

The field shrinks fast. In our first Premier League season, 171 players became 4 in four matchweeks. Once you're down to a handful of players who have used most of the big clubs, it's easy for every one of them to lose on the same weekend. With two or three left, one upset can take out the lot.

Pubs and offices usually settle it one of three ways: everyone left shares the pot, everyone left is reinstated, or the round is replayed. The problem with sharing is that there's only one winner in a survivor game, and only one prize. So we replay it.

The rule, step by step

1. Every remaining player loses in the same matchweek. A draw counts as a loss.
2. Nobody is knocked out. The matchweek is marked as voided for that pool.
3. The teams are given back. Whatever team each player used that week becomes available to them again, so the void doesn't cost anyone a team.
4. The same players carry on into the next matchweek, and the game continues until one is left.

If only some of the remaining players lose, the normal rule applies: they go out and the rest carry on. The void only happens when the whole field goes down together.

The one exception: the final matchweek

A void needs a next round to carry into. In the last matchweek of the competition there isn't one, so if more than one player is still in at the end, a tiebreak decides the winner. It runs in this order:

1. The combined goal difference of every team you picked.
2. The fewest auto-picks, so someone who made all their own picks beats someone the system picked for.
3. The earliest to join the pool.
4. If it's still level, a draw seeded from that round's actual scores. Nobody can know it in advance, and it's published afterwards so anyone can check it.

That means there is always exactly one winner, with nothing shared and nothing left to argue about.

Does it happen often?

Not often, but it happens. It's most likely late in a season with two or three players left. The full wording is in our published rules, and the Season 1 recap shows how quickly a field of 171 thins out.

Want to play? The free Last Man Standing Global Pool is open for Season 2, or you can set up a private pool for your mates or office. See is there a free Last Man Standing app? for how it all works.