FC 26 Players

EA FC 26 will hand over to FC 27 in September. Although the overall reception of EA FC 26 has been mixed, with negative opinions even outweighing positive ones, the fact remains that EA FC 26 has performed quite well commercially.

Looking back at how FUT 26 changed over the past year is still worthwhile, as it can provide a useful reference for players planning to play FC 27. Starting with several of the more important Promos and updates, let's take a look at what the official team actually did throughout the year.

Ultimate Scream (Title Update v1.1.0)

The first month after EA FC 26 launched was when player sentiment was at its strongest. Many of the issues players had complained about in FC 25 were changed or fixed by the official team. The on-pitch gameplay felt like some of the best in recent years, dribbling became more fluid and responsive, and the overall attacking experience was arguably the smoothest in the series.

Even more surprisingly, Ultimate Scream Promo returned on October 24 after a 6-year absence. It brought unexpected and exaggerated boosts to player attributes without breaking the game's balance too early, and many players enjoyed this Promo.

However, Title Update v1.1.0 released almost alongside Ultimate Scream Promo received a much less favorable response.

It slightly increased the speed and responsiveness of Sprint Jockey for user-controlled players, but significantly weakened R1 Dribbling.

Many players and content creators felt that the official team had overcorrected, pushing the game away from an attack-heavy meta and back toward a more defensive style in which scoring goals became more difficult. Around 68% of players reportedly disliked the update.

However, Title Update v1.2.0, released on November 11, managed to turn things around to some extent. It fixed overly strong AI defending as well as strange goalkeeper mistakes, which was exactly what players had been asking for.

Overall, although Title Update v1.1.0 was somewhat problematic, the first two months after EA FC 26 launched still offered a fairly enjoyable gameplay experience.

TOTY Promo (Title Update v1.4.0)

By early 2026, FC 26 was approaching the biggest Promo of the year. This was a crucial turning point because player cards were about to receive a major increase in overall power, and most players were entering the middle stage of the game.

However, let's move slightly backward first and take a look at Title Update v1.4.0, which was released on January 5.

The core of this update was a reduction to overly strong AI defending. The reaction speed of AI defenders was lowered, giving attackers more room to operate. It also fixed an issue in Squad Battles where the computer AI would maintain possession excessively.

If this update had arrived during the early stages of FC 26, it probably would not have caused much concern. However, players had already been playing FC 26 for more than three months, and Ultimate Teams they had built around the existing gameplay were significantly weakened after the patch. The meta players also changed, which disrupted the in-game economy, leading many players to strongly dislike the update.

TOTY Promo, which launched on January 16, 2026, did little to ease the frustration. Many players reported that even after saving and opening a huge number of packs, it was still extremely difficult to see a single TOTY player.

Another issue during FC 26 TOTY Promo was the absence of something similar to the repeatable 82×20 Upgrade SBC from FC 25. That SBC allowed free-to-play players to turn a large amount of gameplay time into opportunities to open packs. Free players simply did not have enough FC 26 Coins to open large numbers of TOTY packs.

TOTY Promo also removed the traditional TOTY-themed packs and replaced them with a token-based system with lower overall rewards, leaving free-to-play players almost completely shut out from the top-tier rewards.

Overall, this period produced the most concentrated wave of negative feedback for FC 26, and the gameplay experience was no longer as enjoyable as it had been shortly after launch.

FUT Birthday (Title Update v1.5.0)

Title Update v1.5.0, released on March 4, was particularly important because it once again changed the way the game played.

The update weakened one-dimensional approaches that relied heavily on PlayStyles, such as Tiki Taka and Incisive Pass. This made matches more dependent on how well players judged space and timing rather than simply relying on specific abilities.

At the same time, players' base attributes became important again. Players with high Passing attributes gained a clearer advantage in short passing, making squad building more strategic.

This was another highly polarizing update. Although it delivered on some of the promises made when FC 26 launched, it changed the meta in much the same way as Update v1.4.0, causing the value of relevant players to fall from several hundred thousand FC 26 Coins to the low hundreds of thousands of FC 26 coins.

Perhaps as a way to make up for this, FUT Birthday Promo, which began on March 6, allowed players to choose which PlayStyle+ to add to a player card through Choose Your Own Adventure EVO. Overall, however, Promo was not particularly impressive.

TOTS Promo

TOTS Promo officially began on April 17 and continued through May 22. It was a 6-week event and, like TOTS in previous years, was one of the most important Promos in FC 26.

The official team did not release another Title Update that fundamentally changed the core gameplay during this period. Most updates focused on bug fixes, but TOTS Promo itself was still worth discussing.

TOTS consistently introduced some of the strongest player cards of the year. Players such as Lamine Yamal, Harry Kane, and Bruno Fernandes all received extremely powerful cards. However, player interest in TOTS was not particularly high.

On one hand, the absence of some elite stars, such as Vinicius Jr., disappointed players. On the other hand, the player cards introduced during FUT Birthday Promo already had extremely high attributes and multiple PlayStyles+, which made the improvement offered by TOTS cards feel relatively limited. As a result, players gradually lost interest in TOTS.

At least based on this Promo, the official team had not delivered on its promise to control power creep.

The World's Game(Title Update v1.6.0)

Normally, FC 26 would gradually enter its late stage after TOTS, with the active player base slowly declining. However, 2026 was a World Cup year, and that helped keep FC 26 relevant.

Although it did not have FIFA license, FC 26 still used licenses for various national teams, clubs, and players to launch a World Cup-style event called The World's Game on June 4.

In addition to adding 53 licensed national teams, it introduced several well-received Promos, including Path to Glory and Glory Hunters. Both the player cards and token system received generally positive feedback.

From July through August, the Festival of Football shifted the official team's focus toward FC 27, so there were no major changes during this stage.

Will FC 27 Be Better Than FC 26?

To be honest, although EA FC 27 makes several changes based on FC 26, they are not enough to make it feel like a true next-generation experience. Throughout the entire FC 26 lifecycle, several gameplay adjustments frustrated players, but World Cup helped keep the game active and relevant for almost the entire year.

The full year of EA FC 26 brought players frustration, enjoyment, and fatigue. Once World Cup hype fades, FC 27 may find it difficult to replicate the situation seen with FC 26, and there is a strong chance that player enthusiasm will gradually decline after TOTS.

EA FC 27 will arrive in one month, and EA FC 26 has also launched Season 10: Pre-Season, with Pre-Season event serving as a warm-up for the upcoming game.

UT mode store has also introduced Pre-Season Tokens, a new type of token that is separate from Festival of Football Tokens and FUTTIES Tokens. Here is how to obtain Pre-Season Tokens as quickly as possible.

Objectives

The first thing to focus on is Objectives system. Weekly Objectives, Season 10 Double Trouble, and Pre-Season Completionist do not include Pre-Season Tokens, but they do offer Icons, packs, and FC 26 Coins, so they are still worth completing if you have time.

Pre-Season Player Objectives are another important source, with each set rewarding a player and tokens. The players are Callum Wilson, Catarina Macario, Nicolás Otamendi, and Leandro Trossard.

Pre-Season Wilson awards 100 FUTTIES Tokens, while the subsequent player objectives switch to 100 Pre-Season Tokens instead of FUTTIES Tokens.

FUTTIES Token Collector #4 also includes 100 Pre-Season Tokens. These objectives can be completed in any game mode, including Squad Battles on Semi-Pro difficulty or higher, Live Events, Rivals, and Champs, so the best choice depends on personal preference. The tasks themselves are simple enough, making these 100 tokens particularly easy to obtain.

In Live Events Objectives, FUTTIES Daily Knockout Tournament and FUTTIES Daily Knockout Tournament Bonus Completionist both provide Pre-Season Tokens.

The two Objectives provide a combined total of 200 tokens. Both are time-limited, but missing them is not a major issue because the official team is expected to release more similar Live Events later.

Other Objectives currently do not offer tokens, but more Objectives containing Pre-Season Tokens should become available after Friday’s update. Be sure to regularly check all Objectives under Seasonal Campaign and Live Events so that no token opportunities are missed.

Division Rivals

The next source of tokens comes from weekly Division Rivals rewards. This lets you make progress in two areas at once, because completing Objectives in Rivals also contributes toward your weekly rewards.

For example, in Division 3, reaching 24 points grants 500 Pre-Season Tokens along with FC 26 Coins and several packs. Even with 15 points, you can still receive 250 tokens.

The specific rewards are as follows:

• Division 1: 600 tokens
• Division 2: 500 tokens
• Division 3: 500 tokens
• Division 4: 500 tokens
• Division 5: 450 tokens

As you can see, the difference in token rewards between divisions is relatively small, while the competitive intensity can vary considerably. Even Division 5 is only 50 tokens behind the higher divisions. Overall, Division 3 and Division 4 offer a strong balance between the required effort and token rewards.

If you want to improve your Division, besides skill, you also need stronger players. You can buy FC 26 coins at IGGM.com and then build a stronger team.

For registered IGGM users, you can also use the points accumulated through IGGM check-ins to redeem discounts or cash coupons in IGGM Coupons. You can use them in your FC 26 order to get discounts.

Squad Battles

Another gameplay-based way to obtain tokens is through Squad Battles:

• Rank 1-200: 600 tokens
• Elite 1: 600 tokens
• Elite 2: 600 tokens
• Elite 3: 600 tokens
• Gold 1: 400 tokens
• Gold 2: 300 tokens
• Gold 3: 200 tokens

If you complete all of the matches, you should be able to reach at least Gold 2 or Gold 1, and potentially an Elite rank. This means an additional 400 to 600 tokens each week.

Pre-Season Tokens SBCs

Besides the 2 methods above, there is another way to obtain Pre-Season Tokens. Head to SBCs and find the Swaps tab.

The official team has replaced the rewards in this section from FUTTIES Tokens with Pre-Season Tokens. From 83 OVR Token Swap through 91 OVR Token Swap, you can use your available Fodder to exchange for Pre-Season Tokens.

For example, 91 OVR Token Swap requires five players rated exactly 91 OVR and rewards 75 tokens. It can be refreshed once per week. The other Token Swap requirements work in a similar way, although the number of tokens awarded varies.

90 OVR Token Swap provides 60 tokens, while 89 OVR Token Swap provides 50 tokens. 88 OVR Token Swap provides 40 tokens.

If you complete all of them, you can obtain roughly 200 to 300 tokens per week through Swaps. Thanks to the repeatable 85×10 pack, Fodder is currently almost unlimited, which effectively means another 300 tokens can be obtained each week at no additional cost.

Total Tokens

Through SBC Swaps, you can obtain around 300 tokens per week, while Division Rivals and Squad Battles can provide up to 1,000 tokens per week.

Objectives are a little more complicated, averaging around 500 tokens per week, although more opportunities should be added later. That means you can currently accumulate around 1,800 Pre-Season Tokens per week.

The weekly limit for Pre-Season Tokens has been increased - from 1000 tokens to 3000 tokens. This significantly increases the amount of rewards players can redeem each week.

Since the weekly acquisition limit for Pre-Season Tokens is 3,000, and there is currently no storage limit. The current acquisition amount has not reached the cap yet, so the official team may increase the token rewards from Division Rivals and Squad Battles later. Even if you have not accumulated many tokens yet, there is no need to rush.

As for how to use Pre-Season Tokens, Ferdinand Icon, worth 2000 tokens, offers the best value. Both evolutions only provide 4+ match styles, and currently, players prefer cards with 5+ match styles.

The shop will be updated with more content on Fridays, including additional players and evolutions similar to those added during FUTTIES; you can stay tuned.