EA FC, and the FIFA series before it, are known worldwide as some of the best football games ever made. Yet interestingly, they also receive plenty of criticism from their own fans. Many complaints are exaggerated, but one of them stands out as unusual in the world of esports. It revolves around the yearly release cycle.
Real football is played in seasons that usually begin around October and continue into late spring or early summer. Clubs prepare during the off-season, new players arrive, and the cycle resets. EA understood that this system fits well with a football game, so the franchise adopted the rhythm of releasing a new title every year.
In earlier years, this was not a problem. The game was mostly played offline, and having new players, kits and stadiums each year felt fresh. But as EA FC developed into a global esport, the constant reset started to affect competitive play, especially in Ultimate Team, the game’s most popular mode where players build lineups by collecting footballer cards.
As each year progresses, EA releases more and more special cards, from Christmas to Halloween to Team of the Season. Every new version of a player is stronger than the last, and the most powerful cards appear in the summer, just before everything resets in October. This gives players roughly 9-10 months to learn the game, adapt to new mechanics and gather the best cards.
Early in the season, tournaments are usually weaker because players are still adapting to the new edition, unlike games such as League of Legends, CS2 or traditional fighting games that stay consistent for longer. Ultimate Team also pushes players to buy new cards every year. Often, spending real money becomes necessary to stay competitive. For example, Mbappe started EA FC 25 with a 91-rated card, but his TOTY version reached 96, with 165 more total stats. The same player, but significantly better in every measurable way.
A longer release cycle and a rethinking of Ultimate Team would likely benefit both the game and the competitive scene, but such a shift seems unlikely. Instead, adjusting expectations might be the best approach. Some players enjoy the clean slate that arrives every autumn, even if the sense of equal footing disappears quickly once FUT matches begin.
