EA Sports FC 26 delivers one of the biggest gameplay upgrades in years, but it's not a title winner

EA Sports has framed the marketing campaign for the latest annual installment in its juggernaut soccer simulation series around a single phrase: “We hear you.”

The glossy trailers and gameplay deep dives haven’t been afraid to list all the problems that players encountered in EA Sports FC 25, before explaining exactly how EA Sports FC 26 will fix them. Has this upfront approach to addressing feedback led to the perfect entry in the franchise formerly known as FIFA? Not quite, but FC 26 is certainly a step in the right direction.

The biggest improvement comes to the gameplay, which sees the on-pitch action split across distinct presets: Competitive and Authentic. It’s a significant and welcome change. Unfortunately, the tweaks to the core modes are less substantial, and Ultimate Team still feels exploitative.

As an annual FC player, I was particularly unimpressed with last year’s iteration, and my reduced playtime over the season proves it. However, EA Sports FC 26 takes enough smart steps forward to bring me back into the fold, even if there are still many off-field issues that EA continues to ignore.

EA Sports FC 26: The Basics

• What is it? EA Sports FC 26 is the latest annual entry in the long-running series once known as FIFA. It offers you the chance to play the world's most popular sport from the comfort of your own couch.
• Who is it for? The FC series has a dedicated playerbase who will typically pick it up every year without fail, but it also makes for a great party game due to its robust offline co-op options.
• What's the price? The standard edition of EA Sports FC 26 costs $69.The digital-only Ultimate Edition costs $99 and includes a few extras.
• What other games has the developer made? EA Sports FC 26 was developed by EA Studios in both Vancouver and Romania, both of which are dedicated to the annualized franchise.
• What games is this similar to? The closest rival to EA Sports FC 26 is Konami's eFootball series (previously known as Pro Evolution Soccer), which is now a free-to-play title.

A better, beautiful game

For years, the developers at EA have struggled to create a digital simulation of soccer that meets the demands of both the online competitive scene and the offline community that craves a recreation of the sport that closely mimics the real thing.

The solution? Stop trying to please both camps simultaneously. EA Sports FC 26 introduces two distinct gameplay presets: Competitive and Authentic. As the names suggest, the former plays a little quicker and is designed for competitive online play. The latter is slower, more accurately simulating the real-world pace of a match, with goals not flowing quite as frequently.

You can switch between these modes at will (though you can’t use Authentic gameplay in online Ultimate Team), but I found that I enjoyed each for the intended purpose. In Career Mode, Authentic gameplay resulted in more realistic matches, whereas the Competitive gameplay ensured my online matches were fast-paced and full of goalmouth action.

The standard FC franchise controls are retained across both presets, so switching between them isn’t an issue. Though I suspect players who become very familiar with Authentic mode and then try to change pace to the Competitive playstyle may require a brief adjustment period.

The inclusion of two distinct gameplay presets is a significant shakeup, but it proves to be a masterstroke. It’s the one upgrade added in FC 26 that I imagine will become a constant inclusion in every EA FC future release. Having now sampled both Competitive and Authentic gameplay, I never want to go back to a single unified gameplay preset ever again.

FUT really wants your money

For better or worse, Ultimate Team continues to be both FC’s signature mode and a cash-printer for EA Sports. Because of this, it’s often where the lion’s share of attention goes in each new annual release. EA Sports FC 26 doesn’t buck that trend; the focus is very much on FUT.

The mode has been revamped in ways that dedicated players will appreciate. These range from FUT Champions no longer including a playoff phase in response to complaints of players being forced to compete in a ludicrous amount of matches, to the return of seasonal tournaments and a new Gauntlet mode that tests the depth of your squad, not just your starting XI.

Interestingly, EA has talked about wanting to make the progression curve in FUT more gradual this year. This results in rewards for just about everything being noticeably meager compared to even just EA Sports FC 25. The days of completing a relatively simple set of goals and receiving a 90+ rated special card for your troubles are seemingly over.

I’ll admit that in previous seasons, it has been a little silly how even more casual players could build a team stacked with the best players in the game within the first few weeks of launch, but there’s a rather more pernicious element to slowing player progression to such a noticeable level.

Everybody knows that FUT is pay-to-win. It always has been, and clearly, always will be. Players willing to open their wallets and buy packs of players have a tagable advantage. In FC 26, by making it harder to build a squad of superstars without spending extra, those who are tempted to swap real money for virtual FC Points are given a bigger advantage than ever.

Considering that players grumble every year about the pay-to-win nature of the mode, it’s frustrating to see the balance being shifted further towards rewarding extra spending.

Smaller changes elsewhere

As is now the norm, outside of FUT, the rest of FC 26’s modes have seen a few tweaks, but most of these are window dressing that sound more substantial in promotional videos than they prove to be in practice.

Career mode is fundamentally the same experience. Arguably, the biggest change here is that I can no longer make my annual joke about each new FC game being the only place where I’ll ever see my beloved Newcastle Utd win a trophy. The Mapgies secured the Carabao Cup last season (yes, I just wanted to shoehorn in a reference to Newcastle finally winning a trophy).

The big new edition adorning the back of the box (or digital store listing page, it is 2025 after all) is Manager Mode Live, which offers offline players a rotating selection of objectives, such as being required to be top of the table at the halfway point of the season. EA is promising that future live scenarios will be inspired by real events that occur in the football world.

Other additions include new “unexpected events” like your club suffering a financial collapse, slashing your transfer budget, or an injured player deciding to retire early, leaving a gaping hole in your squad. These have a degree of novelty, but do little to make Career Mode feel truly fresh. For the most part, in FC 26, it’s the same offline offering we’ve had for years.

Clubs and Rush both return. I’m not much of a Clubs player, but the listed improvements appear slight, with only a new Archetypes system added. Meanwhile, the 5v5 Rush mode has basically been ignored, which is a huge shame, as I continue to believe it’s one of the best additions to the franchise ever. For example, you can still only play Rush in a single dedicated stadium.

FC needs a visual refresh

Graphically, EA Sports FC 26 maintains the series's trademark high standards of sporting authenticity. FC still boasts all the major domestic leagues like the Premier League, Bundesliga and Ligue 1. However, the Italian options suffer with juggernauts like AC Milan, Inter Milan, Lazio and Atalanta all unlicensed. This makes the prospect of a Serie A Career mode unappealing.

The broadcast packages played at the start of matches are pleasant, if repetitive, considering how often they’re recycled. In the world of FC, it seems that basically every stadium on Earth is surrounded by the same few city streets. The top players all look pretty lifelike, and it’s great to once again see the women’s game taken so seriously with full inclusion across all modes.

Overall, the visual presentation does feel just a little tired. Longtime players will spot numerous recycled animations, like when your team lifts a trophy, and can EA please add a new goalkeeper celebration cutscene because the one modeled on former Man City keeper Joe Hart has been an ever-present for around 10 years (and I'm very sick of it seeing GKs mimic it each year).

What’s not great to see is that FC 26 retains the menu design of its predecessor, and to be blunt, it’s atrocious. I said in my FC 25 review that “everything always takes two, sometimes even three clicks more than it should,” and on reflection, that was too generous. Often, it takes half a dozen clicks to perform basic tasks. Layers of confusion are added to what should be simple options, like starting a new Career Mode or watching a replay.

Even worse is that the menus are often unresponsive, and I’ve found more than a few typos in Career Mode submenus. It’s just not a good interface experience whatsoever. Perhaps in other games this would be a somewhat minor gripe, but in a sports game like FC 26, where flicking through menus is a regular occurrence, it’s a major problem that desperately needs fixing.

EA Sports FC 26 review: Verdict

Playing EA Sports FC 26 certainly hasn’t made me feel like all my long-standing issues with the series have been heard. FUT has rarely felt so eager for me to open up my wallet. Career Mode isn't getting any fresher, and the menu design remains worthy of relegation.

Curiously, the other juggernaut soccer simulator on the market, Sega’s Football Manager series, was last year forced into an unplanned 12-month hiatus after the development team struggled with switching to a new engine. This may actually result in a bigger leap between iterations, and I can’t help but wonder if EA Sports FC would benefit from a similar extended break between releases, even just for a season. A longer development period could allow for a refreshed approach and more substantial upgrades.

Granted, due to FC’s dependable annualized nature, I’m aware this is almost certainly wishful thinking on my part. But at least EA Sports FC 26 makes noticeable upgrades where it matters most: On the pitch. The new gameplay presets feel like a huge step forward. While EA Sports FC 26 may not mark a new era, it does make enough smart tweaks to avoid the dreaded drop.