DISCORD Channel link: International League on DISCORD - chat room
Each of my leagues has their own dedicated room to discuss things about that particular league but there is a general chat area for anyone who partakes in any BLM fantasy games I run here:
BLM Fantasy Games general chat room on DISCORD
I welcome all who enjoy fantasy gaming to join - come build the community.
Keeper Deadline Date: Friday, July 26, 2024
Slow Draft Start Date: Sunday July 28, 2024
(Snake style draft - 24hrs per pick - may be shortend as season approaches if does not look like draft will complete in time for start of regular season)
Bold & Boxed text always means new for this season (to aide returning GM’s to quickly find internal rule changes or new rules).
In the International League each GM manages their real country. Your team’s name in the league must be your country spelt in (English and in) CAPITAL LETTERS (to bring some uniformity to the league). Also, your team logo/picture must be your countries current official flag as used by said countries national sports teams. Also, no fake names please or 1 letter initial - first name must be used - failure to comply will see you replaced. This is to make the league owners list have some uniformity.
I wish for serious players that won’t quit during the season as it’s national pride at stake. I am ENGLAND and going nowhere so pointless going on the waiting list for. All other current countries in the league can be seen above. If you qualify and are interested to go on the reserve/waiting list then post on this thread telling me which country or countries you qualify for (and wish to manage). To qualify you must be born in or have at least one parent from that country.
You will then go on the waiting list. As and when people are removed from the league due to the *strikes rule (*see later) or opt to leave then the next person that meets the criteria on the waiting list will be invited to take over that place/team. It can and may be renamed to a completely new country depending on the new incoming owner.
Each team is able to keep 1 player from their previous seasons finishing team. If a keeper is kept he will fill his draft round spot from the preceding season. If he was an undrafted player then he will fill the last round spot on your roster (Round 15). You do not have to keep a player in which case you will draft as normal each round in your designated position.
Furthermore, a keeper will count against your original pick in the applicable round (should you have more picks due to draft pick trading). If you no longer have your original pick for the round your keeper is due to be allocated to then he will take your next highest pick going upwards - so could be the same round (if you have traded for more draft picks in that round) or the next round(s) going upwards. If you don’t have any higher draft picks then you can not keep that particular player and I will override your keeper choice to ‘no keeper selected’ after the keeper lock deadline before the live draft takes place.
Long term keepers (that being players or team defences that were keepers the previous season) will increase their drafted round by 1 round regardless of whether they were your teams keeper or another teams. Naturally Round 1 keepers just stay round 1 (for obvious reasons).
All other keepers just count as your rounds pick for the round they were drafted in the previous season regardless of team that drafted or kept them originally.
Due to a misinterpretation of the rules regarding keepers in another league of mine last season I feel I needed to try and make the Keeper rules more precise and offer clarification on how I apply them. If you are ever in doubt about how a rule will work or be applied please contact me - the best way is to message me on Discord but other ways are available.
My keeper rule was originally thought up to put some strategy and skill in to finding or lucking out with a rookie gem or player that fell way below normal ADP (Average Draft Position) due to injury or suspension etc., the year you drafted them so that you could then keep them at great value for season after season with them just raising by +1 round a season if you continuously kept them. The rule is now clearer - if the player was a keeper the previous season regardless of which team kept them, they will bump up by 1 round draft pick wise if selected as a keeper again in consecutive seasons (even if being kept by a different team).
It is not about free agents you pick up during the season, but only completely undrafted players - so just those players that went undrafted in the previous seasons draft - that will count as last round selections under the keeper rule. All other players whether you drafted them or picked them up later in the season off the waiver wire, or traded for them it matters not. In all those circumstances their actual draft spot in the previous draft determines their keeper cost (the draft round they will be awarded against if being selected as a keeper). The rule is this way because it is something that is tangible and previous seasons draft results can always be accessed on NFL.com via the history section - for past years. So I am able to go back through every round and see when a player was drafted, in what round or if they were not drafted at all.
Another caveat is if you have traded away your original draft picks during the previous season (or prior to this seasons draft) and no longer have your original draft pick for the round a keeper you selected is due against then the keeper will go against the next highest pick you have going up from where your ORIGINAL PICK should be. If you don’t have a higher draft pick then you can not keep that player and I will override said player selection to ‘no keeper selected’ after the keeper deadline. So people need to be aware of this when draft pick trading and planning their keeper for the following season. Just having a pick in the correct round might not necessarily be good enough as it needs to be a higher one from your original pick in that round (not lower) if you don’t have your original pick anymore.
I have created a video explaining the keeper rule and how it works. It also explains how you can find out for yourself what any player on your roster from last season will cost you draft round pick wise:
International League Explaining the Keeper Rule
Please be aware to facilitate having to manually adjust the draft board (i.e. entering in the keepers at the correct positions before we draft) their will be a deadline to choose your keeper by - you can change your keeper choice as often as you wish up until the deadline but once the deadline is reached it will lock and then you will be stuck with your choice or if you have not selected a player you will not have a keeper for the forthcoming season. It is each owners responsibility to find out when the keeper deadline locks and once it is reached no more changes can be made.
For those teams that make the playoffs proper (teams finishing 1st-8th) draft order will be a reverse of the previous years finishing positions as decided by NFL.com - so the previous years champion will draft last in round 1 (*20th) and the team finishing 8th (*13th). [*excluding draft pick trading]
However if you’re not in the running for the title (i.e. in the playoffs proper), there used to be nothing to play for except next years draft position - and the way it was the worse you did in the dead games, the better your draft pick position the next year. This encouraged GM’s who were out of the playoffs not to try and win, actually often hoping to lose by starting their worst players (just to avoid falling foul of the strike rule, as there’s nothing else riding on those results).
So to address this some seasons ago I amended the internal rules to make the dead games worth winning because from then onward this part of the draft order involving the 12 non-championship contending playoff teams is inverted - to reward post season wins, however pointless they may seem at the time. The 8 proper playoff teams will still keep their draft positions (20th - 13th).
However the rest will now go like this…
The team finishing 9th (i.e. best of the non-qualifiers) will have pick #1
The team finishing 10th (2nd best non-qualifier) will have pick #2
And so on, down to the team finishing 20th (worst non-qualifier) will have pick #12
I think this has proved good for the league as now tanking for a better draft spot will not fly as the dead rubber games have something riding on them. This has also helped with the also ran GM’s trading away their better players with late round draft picks to the playoff bound GM’s who are willing to sell their next seasons chances on winning this year by agreeing to trades involving their bad players but with higher round draft picks from the following season - which was skewing the integrity of the league imho.
I have changed the default scoring from 4 points for a thrown TD to 3 points - half what the scorer of a TD (6pts) gets.
All other current league settings including Scoring Settings can be viewed here: IL Settings
Some owners in almost any non-money fantasy league I have been in do not pay enough attention with regards to setting their line ups especially when they are out of the running. So to combat this in many of my leagues I have a Strike rule. It boils down to a three strikes and out policy.
However I do listen to my fellow league GM’s and after careful consideration I eased the strike rule (just a tad) in all my leagues many seasons back. The rules were amended slightly - call it an extra chance to get away with your error(s)… meaning you will only be issued the due strikes if you do not win your match up. So in effect if you still win your game you have not affected the overall outcome of the league in a detrimental way so therefor no strikes will be issued. This I feel will help those who trip up periodically with more chances to not get struck out of the league without truly deserving it.
To check any of your players statuses just click on their name when on your team page and it brings up their player card with information about them - sadly on Sleeper the website and app differ from this point. Scrolling down on the app will show you recent news and below it, if you scroll down more, past updates with dates/times that info was published. Alas on the website the player card only shows you the latest news - not any previous updates. So for strike checking purposes I will be having to use the app more to see when news was published - and I will use these updates when checking on players that appear not to have played in owners starting line ups and what I find is how I make a judgement on whether or not a strike is justified.
Further more if a person hits 6 strikes in a single season I will do my best to find an owner to replace that owner mid-season and have the offending non serious owner removed ASAP!
STRIKES WILL CARRY OVER TO THE NEXT SEASON - I have decided this to give new interested people the chance to get in the league should people hit 3 strikes and to make sure serious owners continue to pay attention. However I also realise everyone has unforeseen circumstances that cause a mistake etc., resulting in errors that earn a strike. So each year an owner returning to play in the league (if not struck out) will automatically have 1 strike removed (if on any) - so in effect if you were on 1 strike end of the preceding season your be clear the next season - if you had 2 strikes - your be back down to 1 etc.,. Call it probation and for good behaviour you come off of probation.
From the 2020 season strikes also became issued for not being seen to vote in an official poll posted within the league and this rule will carry over to Sleeper - the good thing is I am assured Sleeper shows who has voted in a poll so it should be much easier for me and you, to check if you have voted in a poll. It’s been the hardest thing for me as a commissioner to get people to engage with me on rules and proposals to do with the league like having a trade deadline, or changing a flex spot etc., so now it’s mandatory to partake in polls - and you only pick up a strike if you have not voted after 28 days - so no excuse really if your an active player! I dislike having to do this but for many seasons people have just not been engaging enough to help me shape the league by voting in polls so felt I had to do this so I can weed out and replace non committed GM’s with ones who buy into the ethos behind this custom International keeper league and make it fun and engaging for all of us.
Sometimes as we go along things come up and I as the LC (League Commissioner) have to make a ruling. So this is where I clarify and make the rulings on things that crop up over time so people can look up the answers going forward at any time just by coming here to see if it has already happened before and what the ruling is. It is also a reference point for me to see what I did previously so as to be consistent in actions I do.
1) The LC has the right to reorganise the Divisions each season prior to the draft. This is only done when new teams / nations have joined the IL. I do this trying to make divisions firstly regional as best I can and secondly put natural rivals in the same Divisions.
2) Draft pick trading - draft pick trades can only be swapped for the very next draft (not multiple seasons in advance). I know the real life teams can but I have made this ruling for two reasons. One it will be very hard for me to keep track off and two a GM could pile up trouble for years down the line and then just leave and I’d find it almost impossible to get a replacement as they would have no chance due to so many early picks being traded away for possibly seasons to come. Also by making this ruling it means most of the season the system does it all and records it for me to find the following year - the only time it doesn’t is now prior to our leagues draft when I allow it and do it via the leagues wall and by using a poll when a vote is necessary.
As I need to manually adjust the draft board to reflect swapped draft picks before our draft room goes live (and this takes time) out of season (pre-draft) draft pick trades must be agreed before the keeper deadline.
3) If during a season a GM trades away his same draft pick to 2 different teams whether by accident or deliberate planning then instead I will take away their next highest pick instead to cover the trade. If we are talking about a round 1 double deal where there is no higher pick I can take away to cover the trade I will then swap there next 2 picks going down to whoever they traded with for a further round down pick from the cheated party. Basically being detrimental to the owner who made this error as punishment so be careful (as yes the system does stupidly allow this as I discovered in the past when someone did it).
Example: Team A trades his next years Round 1 pick with 2 different teams - only one team can get it so the other team has been screwed. In this case I will take team A’s 2nd and 3rd Round picks and give them to the cheated team in return team A will still get whatever pick(s) was part of the trade plus the cheated teams 4th round pick. What ever happens the cheated team will be compensated at the expense of the guilty team regardless of the offending teams mistake being genuine error or deliberate malpractice.
Is Canada available? Born and raised.
@Crosbyy - Yes, as previous GM - and friend of mine - hit 3 strikes last season so lost auto right of return. You want slot PM me your real name - first and last, e-mail address and I’ll get you invited. Make sure to join my Discord channel and introduce yourself to rest of league both there and on leagues message board within sleeper.
KEEPERS
(below is last seasons keepers - to help people know the players that will go up by +1 round if kept again this season)
This list will be replaced by this years keepers once the keeper deadline has passed.
WEEKLY STRIKE COUNT 2024
WK1 - no strikes issued
WK2 - no strikes issued
WK3 - 1 strike (Portugal)
WK4 - 2 strikes (Australia & Mexico)
WK5 - 4 strikes (Australia x2 & Mexico x2)
WK6 - 5 strikes (Australia x3 & Mexico x2)
WK7 - 1 strike (Grenada)
WK8 - no strikes issued
WK9 - no strikes issued
WK10 - 1 strike (Mexico)
WK11 - 2 strikes (Grenada & Pakistan)
WK12 - 1 strike (Denmark)
WK13 - 1 strike (Portugal)
WK14 - 2 strikes (Pakistan x2)
WK15 - 1 strike (Portugal)
WK16 - 1 strike (Portugal)
WK17 - 1 strike (Philippines)
Link to previous years table: IL 2023 Strikes
Additional Strikes (for not voting in polls):
HOUSE KEEPING - 2024 Poll Results
Polls Run in 2024 that will apply going forwards (either immediately or from the 2025 season onwards).
Week 3 Strikes (x1)
Sad to report the following strike is awarded for NFL Week 3:
PORTUGAL - Miguel Roquette x1 for:
x1 Started TE - Evan Engram - (JAX) - OUT / was ruled out before his teams actual game day.
(LC) Not much to say really - more careful attention paid to his team would of avoided this strike as Miguel only avoided a strike last week for this exact same inactive player due to him (Evan Engram) pulling a hamstring in pre-game warm ups prior to Week 2’s Jags game. It has been reported all week he has not been able to practice and then officially ruled out on Saturday with the Jags game not to Monday night a strike is more than warranted here. I suggest you keep a close eye on this player before the Jaguars Week 4 contest as it does not look likely he will play then and if he is ruled out again before the Jags game day and you start him then another strike will be issued.
Week 4 Strikes (x2)
Sad to report the following strikes are awarded for NFL Week 4:
AUSTRALIA - David Ward x1 for:
x1 Started WR - Cooper Kupp - (LAR) - OUT / was ruled out before his teams actual game day.
MEXICO - Alberto Hochkoeppler x1 for:
x1 Started WR - DeVonta Smith - (PHI) - OUT / was ruled out before his teams actual game day.
(LC) Have to say this is rather disappointing. With regards to David / AUSTRALIA this is totally the sign of someone that’s quit on this league as Cooper Kupp has been injured for weeks and news was official he would not play this weekend just gone (NFL Week 4) last Wednesday! Furthermore AUSTRALIA (David) has started RB Kimi Vidal (LAC) every week for the last 4 weeks and he has been a healthy scratch every single week for the Chargers yet David has made no effort to swap him out of his starting line-up - alas I cannot award a strike under the rules as he is only officially scratched (ruled out) on his Gameday each week but by now it should be obvious he is not going to play.
As for Alberto / MEXICO - again it’s just tardiness as even in Sleeper the player card said on Friday that Devonta Smith would not play Sunday - so plenty of time to swap out!
This now puts both AUSTRALIA (David) & MEXICO (Alberto) on 2 strikes apiece, so just 1 more strike for either team the rest of the season and they will be replaced in the off season!
Week 5 Strikes (x4)
Sad to report the following strikes are awarded for NFL Week 5:
AUSTRALIA - David Ward x2 for:
x1 Started RB - Kimani Vidal - (LAC) - BYE / team on their bye week.
x1 Started WR - Cooper Kupp - (LAR) - OUT / was ruled out before his teams actual game day.
MEXICO - Alberto Hochkoeppler x2 for:
x1 Started WR - DeVonta Smith - (PHI) - BYE / team on their bye week.
x1 Started DEF - Ravens - (BAL) - BYE / team on their bye week.
(LC) Not much to say really - GM’s know the rules, start any players of teams on their Bye week and if you lose your match up each player and Team DEF on Bye in your starting line up will cost you x1 strike each. I feel Australia and Mexico have both quit on the RTA and been very non committal this season. As both now have hit 3+ Strikes each will be replaced in the off season unless they hit 6+ strikes (which seems very likely) and then I will try to replace them ASAP in season!
Week 6 Strikes (x5)
Sad to report the following strikes are awarded for NFL Week 6:
AUSTRALIA - David Ward x3 for:
x1 Started WR - Nico Collins - (HOU) - on IR / was placed on injured reserve before his teams actual game day:
x1 Started WR - Jaylen Waddle - (MIA) - BYE / team on their bye week.
x1 Started WR - Cooper Kupp - (LAR) - BYE / team on their bye week.
MEXICO - Alberto Hochkoeppler x2 for:
x1 Started QB - Patrick Mahomes - (KC) - BYE / team on their bye week.
x1 Started TE - Luke Musgrave - (GB) - on IR / was placed on injured reserve before his teams actual game day:
(LC) Words fail me - these two were the two GM’s who let the 24 hour clock run out more than once in the slow draft (so should have taken that as a sign neither was committed to this league any longer) and now neither can be arsed to check their starting line ups and switch out player on bye weeks or put on IR - just glad this number of strikes each means I can replace both GM’s in season and get rid of their disrespectful arses - plus add them to the banned list (picking up 6+ Strikes) which means they aint ever welcome back in the IL!
Week 7 Strikes (x1)
Sad to report the following strike is awarded for NFL Week 7:
GRENADA - Marlon Lewis x1 for:
x1 K –empty– Did not start anyone.
(LC) Bit surprised that Marlon did this but rules is rules so have to dish out a strike. Marlon needs to be so careful now going forward as he carried over 1 strike from last season so he’s now on 2 strikes. Just 1 more strike and he loses his automatic right to return next season - aka if anyone on waiting list wants in they get to replace any one on 3 strikes or more. SO BE CAREFUL!
Week 10 Strikes (x1)
Sad to report the following strike is awarded for NFL Week 10:
MEXICO - Edgar Orona x1 for:
x1 Started RB - Dalvin Cook - (DAL) - OUT / was ruled out before his teams actual game day.
(LC) Not much to say really - GM’s should know the rules, start players who are ruled out before their actual gameday then go on to lose your matchup a strike will ensue. It’s just about checking your team and starting line ups to be on top of these things and adjust accordingly. It’s the first strike for the new Mexico GM so if he does not pick up anymore strikes this season with one coming off between seasons means he will have a clean slate to start next season again. It takes 3+ strikes to lose ones slot for next year & 6+ strikes to be replaced ASAP (in the current season).
Week 11 Strikes (x2)
Sad to report the following strikes are awarded for NFL Week 11:
GRENADA - Marlon Lewis x1 for:
x1 DEF –empty– Did not start one.
PAKISTAN - Yasir (Bobi) Khan x1 for:
x1 Started DEF - Panthers - (CAR) - BYE / team on their bye week.
(LC) Well it seems Marlon (GRENADA) has lost his interest in this league and picked up a third strike by carelessly (or maybe not) leaving his DEF starting slot empty. So he can be replaced for 2025. As for my friend and new GM Bobi (PAKISTAN) @magicman316 it seems fantasy football is not really his cup of tea and picks up his first strike. I have a feeling he will hit 3 before the season is over - if not probably will ask me find someone else to replace him for next season.
So with 1 space already for next season and likely at least 2 if you know anyone who qualifies then please get them to look at this thread and see if this is a league they would like to be a part of.
Week 12 Strikes (x1)
Sad to report the following strike is awarded for NFL Week 12:
DENMARK - Jakob Nyvad x1 for:
x1 Started DEF - Falcons - (ATL) - BYE / team on their bye week.
(LC) Just one of those rookie mistakes - having two DEF’s but both having the same Bye week - doh! This is Jakob’s first ever strike so no big deal as one comes off between seasons so if he makes no more fouls will start next season with a clean slate.
Week 13 Strikes (x1)
Sad to report the following strike is awarded for NFL Week 13:
PORTUGAL - Miguel Roquette x1 for:
x1 Started RB - Austin Ekeler - (WAS) - ON IR / was placed on injured reserve before his teams actual game day.
(LC) Not much to say really - more careful attention paid to his team would of avoided this strike for Miguel as if he had done that then this player could of been switched out before his game on Sunday when he was placed on IR the Saturday. This put’s Miguel (Portugal) on 2 strikes for the year, just one more and he loses his automatic right to return next season so careful attention really needs to be paid going forward including in the fantasy playoffs.
Week 14 Strikes (x2)
Sad to report the following strikes are awarded for NFL Week 14:
PAKISTAN - Yasir (Bobi) Khan x2 for:
x1 Started QB - Bo Nix - (DEN) - BYE / team on their bye week.
x1 Started K - Matt Gay - (IND) - BYE / team on their bye week.
(LC) Well as I alluded to back in Week 11 it has now come to pass and my personal friend representing PAKISTAN - Yasir ‘Bobi’ Khan has gone and picked up 2 more strikes. Clearly a case of not setting his team, probably hasn’t even logged in. It is now obvious to me he was to polite to say ‘no’ when I asked him to join this league and fantasy sports or at least fantasy NFL really is not his thing. So now he is officially on 3 strikes he will be replaced in the off season meaning I now have 2 spaces for 2025 in the IL. Also quite possible I have more as one other GM is on 2 strikes and another has indicated they wont be returning next season so watch the GM list in first post on this thread to see what countries are vacant. If your from or have a parent from a country leaving or from a country not already represented please get in contact with me to say where your from or what country you qualify for and I’ll add you to waiting list and contact you when I refresh league for next season.
