The World’s Game Offers Something For Everyone
EA FC 26 is the latest release in the EA Sports Football Club franchise. This year’s edition comes with the promise of big new features and updates. I’m not entirely new to this franchise, though it has been a few years since I’ve jumped onto the virtual pitch. I’m keen to see what the latest addition brings and how it improves on previous entries in the series. So, lace up your boots, let's dive in and see.
The basic controls within the game remain simple and unchanged from what I could tell, but if you’re a new player or haven’t played this type of game for a while, it can take some time to fully grasp. As a relatively new player myself, I found the Learn to Play mode within EA FC 26 to be a great place to kickstart my journey back into the franchise. In Learn to Play, you can improve your skills, figure out the basic controls, and more. That means not only is Learn to Play helpful for rookies like me, but it might even be useful to a more seasoned EA Sports Football Club professional.
When it comes to basic controls, they are as follows: left stick to move your player, RT and left stick to sprint, with the face buttons performing a variety of actions such as passing, shooting, crossing, tackling, and more depending on the contextual situation in gameplay at the time. That’s only the basics — there are many more advanced things you can do, like skill moves, power shots, and more, but I haven’t reached that level of play yet.
In EA FC 26, there are many different modes you can take part in, such as Ultimate Team, Manager Career, and Player Career, to name a few. So, this game has a lot to offer for advanced players or even newer players like me. The issue is that these modes are the same handful of options we’ve had access to for years now, although they do include some tweaks for the most experienced players.
The biggest difference I’ve noticed with FC 26 is in the gameplay on the pitch. It’s now split into two types of gameplay: Competitive and Authentic. If you’re looking for gameplay that feels as true to life as possible, with extra animations, crisp passing, and more, then your best bet is to play in Authentic mode, which also adds wind speed and direction for extra realism. However, if you want the gameplay to feel as fast-paced and responsive as possible, then Competitive is the way to go. It trades the realism of certain animations to provide the fastest animation in any given situation. As a result, Competitive feels massively different from Authentic. It’s important to note that online play defaults to Competitive, with Authentic not being available. If you play offline in single-player modes, you can choose between the two gameplay styles, allowing you more flexibility in choosing the type of experience you want to have.
As mentioned before, EA FC 26 once again includes Manager Career and Player Career. These modes have been present for so long that many players will know exactly what they offer, but if you’re new like me, here’s a bit more information. Both modes allow you to choose between creating your own manager or player, or playing as a real-life manager or player. I personally enjoyed the idea of creating my own character, though I found the creative tools and options quite limited compared to similar games. In the end, I decided to use an existing real manager and player.
In Manager Career, you take on the job of managing a football team, making decisions on everything from transfers and tactics to scouting and more. I chose Arne Slot, manager of Liverpool. In truth, being new to this mode, I didn’t really know what I was doing, and the pop-up tutorials weren’t very helpful. That being said, I did manage to transfer some players and get my team set up to play matches. There is a lot of depth to Manager Career, but I wish the mode had a better onboarding system for players like me. I’m completely new to this mode, having only dabbled in some online multiplayer and couch co-op sessions previously, so I’m still learning how I want to play. This also applies to Player Career, where you can build up your player’s football skills and turn them into a legend, either by starting fresh or choosing a real-life player. Again, I opted for a real-life player and slowly built their career. Admittedly, Player Career is more simplistic than its Manager counterpart, but it still struggles to explain in detail how each system works.
EA FC 26 deserves immense praise for how it lets you decide how you want to play the game and offers many modes for all kinds of players. For example, I’ve barely scratched the surface with Ultimate Team, a mode that is continually noted as everyone’s favourite. Essentially, Ultimate Team is a trading card game where you compete against other players online for various rewards, selling and buying cards with a currency called coins that you earn by playing and winning matches. Your ultimate goal (no pun intended) is to create the best squad of players possible with the cards you earn, trade, and collect. One major issue with this mode is the ability for players to use real-world money to purchase FC Points, which can then be used to open additional card packs, giving an advantage over those who don’t want to or can’t afford to spend real money. While I don’t like that, one thing I really appreciated about Ultimate Team is the ability to use male and female players together in the same team.
EA FC 26 is the most realistic-looking football game I’ve ever seen. This realism is especially evident in the detail of football kits, as well as some players’ facial features and physiques. Not to mention the world-class animations that make everything look superb with each kick of the ball. I also enjoy the small touches in gameplay, like the weather changing and the time played on the pitch showing effects on the grass. The game displays a true-to-life football atmosphere, with crowd cheers, boos, and goal celebrations. The in-game commentary does a decent job of being realistic, giving coverage of the match and describing what’s going on as it would in a real football broadcast. Although the commentary is admittedly more limited than I would have liked.
When it comes down to it, I’m new to this franchise, but I would recommend EA Sports FC 26 to any new players interested in diving into the football world and long-time fans alike. It teaches you about the whole aspect of football culture, not just kicking a ball. It offers you the chance to be a manager or develop your football career and gives you a glimpse of what that lifestyle can be like. Ultimately, it does a great job of letting you live out a fantasy, and most importantly, it’s fun where it matters — on the pitch.
Developer - EA Canada
Publisher - EA Sports
Released - September 26th, 2025.
Available On - Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch 2, PS4,PS5, PC
Rated - (E) - Users Interact, In-Game Purchases (Includes Random Items)
Platform Reviewed - PC
Review Access - Review code was provided by the publisher for the purpose of this review.
My name is Letitia. I’ve been gaming since the days of the original PlayStation. Although I’ve admittedly been a more casual gamer than most for many years, I’ve recently started to dive deeper into gaming and discover what makes it so special.