The Pitch Notes
EA SPORTS FC™ 24 | Pitch Notes - Ultimate Team Deep Dive
Hey everyone! My name is Petteri Vottonen, Lead Producer of Ultimate Team™ and with me, I have my good friend Richard Walz, Game Design Director of Ultimate Team™. We’re excited to share what our development teams in Bucharest, Vancouver and around the world have been working on for EA SPORTS FC 24.
Ultimate Team in EA SPORTS FC 24 introduces the ability to evolve players in your Club, welcomes women’s footballers to the World’s Game and brings in community-requested features and updates to our fans. Let’s jump in!
Evolutions
Ultimate Team Evolutions is a powerful new system that changes how you think about and build up your squad. For the first time, you'll be able to improve and customise players from your Club. You can take your favourite lower-rated players from any Club and level them up, as well as tweak and customise your top players by adding skill moves, changing work rates and weak foot upgrades as a few examples.
As you level up your players you’ll also earn visual upgrades to show off all the work you’ve put into them. After you evolve a player once, that’s just the beginning. You will be able to run the same player through multiple Evolutions throughout the year, so by the end of the year, you can have unique versions of players that no one else has. With the addition of women's leagues and Evolutions, this is the year where you can finally build your Ultimate Team.
How does it work? What's an Evolution?
You can upgrade and evolve your players by committing them to an Evolution slot and completing gameplay challenges with that player. Once you complete the challenges, that player will have permanent upgrades.
Requirements:
Not every player is eligible for every Evolution. You’ll have to check the requirements to know what players you’re allowed to use. An example of this might be ‘Evolve any Silver Player’, or ‘Evolve a left back with 3* skill moves’.
A selection of Evolutions will be freely available for players to enter each season, and some will have coins or coins/points requirements. Just like the balance of upgrades coming through SBCs, Objectives, and the Transfer Market, we want to make sure Evolutions upgrade paths are balanced across Ultimate Team.
Challenges:
Each Evolution comes with a set of levels of challenges for you to complete. They can range from simple, ‘Play 5 Games where you score with this player in your starting XI’ to challenging ‘Win 10 Ultimate Team Champs matches with this player’. Complete all of the challenges in a level to earn the upgrades, and unlock more levels of challenges to complete.
Upgrades:
You can claim upgrades for your player after each level of challenge you complete. They will range from Overall Stat upgrades, (ex. +5 OVR) or hyper-specific attribute upgrades (ex. +5 Curve). You can even customise and upgrade the following:
- Skill Moves
- Work Rates
- PlayStyles
- Alternative Positions
- Weak Foot
You can also unlock new item visuals and animated backgrounds for your favourite players.
Throughout The Season:
Our goal is to keep Evolutions feeling fresh and updated. We will be adding more ways for you to evolve your squad throughout the season. Some Evolutions might be only available for a limited time and will need to be completed in a specific time frame, or some will need to be enrolled in by a specific time. We’ll be sharing more details about Evolutions in an upcoming Pitch Notes Deep Dive.
Here are the answers to the most commonly asked questions about Evolutions:
FAQ
Can I add an Evolutions player to the Transfer Market?
No. Once a player has been confirmed in an Evolution, it becomes untradeable.
How many players can I Evolve at a time?
You can have as many Evolution players in your squad as you want, but you can only activate one to Upgrade at a time.
Can I switch back and forth between players I want to upgrade, or do I have to finish the entire Evolution before I move on?
You can swap back and forth between your Evolutions freely. If you are working on a Silver Player Evolution and don’t want to bring them into your Champs matches, you can switch to a more appropriate Evolution player in your main squad and work on them.
What happens to my progress if I switch which Evolution I am working on?
Your progress is saved. When you pick up that player and continue to evolve them, you will start right from where you left off.
Can I withdraw my item from an Evolution?
No. Each Evolution can be completed by only one player, and you can’t withdraw your player or forfeit the Evolution.
Can I use Evolution players in Squad Building Challenges (SBCs)
In-progress Evolution players cannot be submitted in SBCs. However, once the Player Item is fully upgraded and the Evolution is completed then you can use them in SBCs.
Do Evolutions have time limits?
Yes, Evolutions can have time restrictions. If the Evolution timer runs out, you will earn all the upgrades for the levels that you have completed. You will not be able to claim the upgrades for any uncompleted, or partially completed levels.
Can I enrol the same player in multiple Evolutions?
Yes! If the player meets the eligibility requirements it can be enrolled in multiple slots, but a player cannot be in multiple slots simultaneously. A player can be enrolled in a new Evolution once their current one is completed.
Is the Evolution version of the player a duplicate of the initial item?
No. An Evolution is a unique item type.
How will I know which player I’m upgrading during gameplay?
There will be an overhead indicator on the player you are actively evolving.
Women’s Football in Ultimate Team™
Ultimate Team in EA SPORTS FC™ 24 unites both halves of The World’s Game, bringing men’s and women’s football together to play on the same pitch. By increasing the player pool by ~1600 players, our goal is for every Ultimate Team to be unique and for you to build your dream XI with the players you love.
5 New Leagues
With the introduction of five new Leagues, you now have more players than ever to add to your squad.
All the Clubs and their players from the following Leagues will be available at launch:
- Barclays Women’s Super League (England)
- D1 Arkema (France)
- Google Pixel Frauen-Bundesliga (Germany)
- Liga F (Spain)
- National Women’s Soccer League (United States)
In addition, a select number of Clubs and their players from the UEFA Women’s Champions League will be available in Ultimate Team at launch, unlocking even more squad building possibilities.
Will men’s and women’s footballers compete on the same pitch?
Yes, all players will compete on the same pitch in Ultimate Team. With more players than ever to choose from, you’ll have the opportunity to get creative with hybrid squads from multiple Leagues.
Ratings shown for illustration only. Ratings and PlayStyles subject to change.
How will Chemistry work?
The way Chemistry works will remain the same with one additional opportunity to link players across men’s and women’s football. All players will continue to link to other players from the same Leagues and Nations (ex. WSL players will link to other WSL players, all English players will link with other English players, etc.). This year, you’ll also be able to link women’s footballers to men’s footballers who play for their affiliated Club (ex. all Chelsea players from the Barclays Women’s Super League will link to all Chelsea players from the Premier League).
Rating shown for illustration only. Ratings & PlayStyles subject to change.
How are men’s football and women’s football Player Items integrated across features in Ultimate Team?
- Evolutions - Men’s and women’s footballers are both eligible for Evolutions, as long as they meet the requirements for the Evolution you’re interested in.
- ICONs and Heroes – Some of the best players from women’s football history will be available as ICONs and Heroes. The complete selection of Player Items will be revealed soon.
- Transfer Market - All tradeable Player Items will be searchable on the Transfer Market based on their League, Club, Nation, position, price, etc.
- Packs - Both men’s and women’s footballers will be available together in the pool of players for packs.
- Objectives - Both men’s and women’s footballers will be used as Objective requirements and Objective rewards.
- Squad Building Challenges (SBCs) - You will be able to submit all players into SBCs as long as they meet the requirements (League, Club, Nation, position, etc.). The introduction of more players will provide more possibilities when it comes to completing an SBC.
- Moments - Both men’s and women’s players will be featured in Moments, highlighting historic matches and encounters.
- Ultimate Team Draft - Any player from the pool of available players in Ultimate Team has the potential to be added to your team in Ultimate Team Draft.
How do Ultimate Team ratings work now?
All players in Ultimate Team are rated relative to the leagues and competition they play against on the real-world pitch. The best players from the best leagues across the men's and women’s games will bring their ratings to the same virtual pitch in Ultimate Team. Base player ratings will be consistent with Kick Off in EA SPORTS FC 24, where men's and women's teams play independently (ex. if a player is 85 rated in Kick Off, they’ll also have a base OVR of 85 in Ultimate Team).
Look out for Player Ratings revealed in September.
PlayStyles
PlayStyles introduce a brand new dynamic to Ultimate Team that goes beyond overall ratings, allowing you to build your squad based on your knowledge of the players - and how they actually play on the pitch.
Each of the PlayStyles effect gameplay, giving players unique capabilities you’ll see and feel that make their way of playing more authentic. PlayStyles+ enhance those signature abilities to a world-class standard. Think of Sam Kerr’s Power Header or Haaland’s Acrobatic ability, reflecting elite player abilities to play at a level that few others can reach.
Rating shown for illustration only. Ratings & PlayStyles subject to change.
PlayStyles are going to change how you glance at items. From scanning across the Transfer Market, or eyeing up your opponent’s squad in the pre-match flow, you’re going to want to pay attention to which PlayStyles each player has. They can be a good indicator of how your opponent will want to play and what their gameplay strategy might be. In this article, we will focus on how they will change your experience in Ultimate Team. For more details on how PlayStyles and PlayStyles+ impact gameplay, please check out the Gameplay Deep Dive here.
If a player has a PlayStyle+, an icon is displayed on the face of the item. You can find further details on PlayStyles in one of the item views, as well as in the Player Bio.
Rating shown for illustration only. Ratings & PlayStyles subject to change.
If you pack a player from a League you aren’t familiar with, but they have a PlayStyle+ on them, they are most likely worth checking out and experimenting with. Another great way of experimenting with PlayStyle+ items is by prioritising these players in your Ultimate Team Draft picks.
Post-launch updates on PlayStyles
Although only the best of the best will have a PlayStyles+ at launch, we will be releasing more versions of players with diverse PlayStyles in our campaigns throughout the year. You will also be able to customise your players in Evolutions and add different PlayStyles to them throughout the year.
Rating shown for illustration only. Ratings & PlayStyles subject to change.
Objectives
Objectives is one of the most popular and engaging features of Ultimate Team and we wanted to freshen it up for EA SPORTS FC™ 24.
With all of the great content in Ultimate Team, it can sometimes be hard to find what’s right for you. Objective Groups will now be organised across multiple tabs so you can find, play, and manage your progress easier.
While our objectives can be extremely fun, how we presented them in the past could feel a bit dry. Some Objective Groups will now have themed backgrounds so the energy and personality of our campaigns can really shine through.
Rating shown for illustration only. Ratings & PlayStyles subject to change. Player not confirmed to be in campaign.
Claim All
There are a lot of great rewards in Objectives and they can quickly pile up for the most engaged players. We want you to get back to the action faster and thus we’ve introduced a new Claim All button.
Pressing Claim All will redeem all rewards from completed Objectives within a single Objective Group and send the rewards to your Club.
Community Improvements
We really value our players and the feedback you all provide. We hear you, and we draw a lot of inspiration and prioritise ideas from everything you share with us in the forums and on social media.
For Ultimate Team in EA SPORTS FC™ 24, it was important for us to dedicate time to tackle some of the most requested quality-of-life changes and improvements. Please keep sharing your feedback with us, it’s very much appreciated!
Item Design
As you have probably noticed, we’ve made some changes to our item designs. By changing the information architecture on the items, we created 30% more space for the athletes' photos and dynamic images. This also gives more breathing room to let the campaign item designs shine.
Rating shown for illustration only. Ratings & PlayStyles subject to change.
- New Player Item layout and wider items.
- All items in the game have had their shapes changed to a new, wider version. The Player Item face view has significant changes to the layout with more room for the player portrait and background art, moving the Club and Nation crests to the bottom of the item as well as introducing the League crests on items, attributes on a single line, and adding the first owner status.
- Special item enhancements.
- For our special/in-form item shells, we made some enhancements to make them stand out more, like expanding on embellishments and having the art “break out” of the shells.
- Animated Backgrounds.
- For a select few of our item shells, we’re introducing exciting new, customised animations that bring the art to life.
Position Modifier Removal & Club Search Improvements
To make squad building even easier, we’ve completely removed the Position Modifier consumables. You can now seamlessly move Player Items around the Squad and the player will automatically start contributing to Chemistry in their Primary and Alternative Positions.
The change is also available in SBCs and Ultimate Team Draft, offering more flexibility and making building your squads easier than ever.
Club Search
Speaking of SBCs, and searching your club, we hear you! We’ve made sure to hide those Loan Players when you’re squad building in SBCs.
In addition, we’re changing the way Position searches work in your Club. The default Position search will now include both Primary and Alternative Positions, making squad building much easier. If you want, you can also narrow down the search to only focus on Primary Positions.
Please note that the combined search will only be available for your Club. Transfer Market search will continue to focus on Primary Positions only.
ICON Changes: Chemistry & Versions
From launch, ICONs will have a single Base version, to be aligned with Heroes and Regular player items. We will capture the eras and stories of these legendary players by continuing to release additional Campaign versions of Heroes and ICONs throughout the year.
In EA SPORTS FC™ 24, each ICON in your Squad will now give an additional Chemistry contribution to every League that’s represented in your squad. If you add two ICONs, that’s two Chemistry contributions, guaranteeing at least one Chemistry Point for each League. This League contribution is in addition to the Nation Chemistry.
Also, we are excited for our debut class of EA SPORTS FC Women ICONs & Heroes, celebrating the pioneers who shaped the game as we know it featuring legends such as Mia Hamm, Sonia Bompastor, Alex Scott and more!
Rating shown for illustration only. Ratings & PlayStyles subject to change.
Item Improvements
Did you pack a cool new Kit or a Tifo? You can now manually equip Customisation Items directly from the New Items Screen. Equipped Customisation Items will automatically take the next available slot in your Stadium. If none are available, an already equipped Customisation Item will be replaced.
Did you open a pack with a lot of untradeable duplicate Player Items? You can now swap them in bulk with their tradeable versions in your Club.
Last but not least, you can now find your favourite Lengthy players easier than ever, with the introduction of Acceleration Types in the Player Bio.
New Menus
We’ve streamlined the navigation in Ultimate Team to get you where you need to be, faster than ever. With the help of the Quick Switcher, you can seamlessly jump between Squad, Transfer Market, Objectives, your favourite game mode and other areas in Ultimate Team.
Squad Battles Match Length
The feedback from the community regarding Squad Battles has been that matches feel too long. We are happy to announce that in EA SPORTS FC™ 24, we are reducing the length of each half from 6 minutes to 4 minutes so you can make the most out of each time you pick up the controller.
On behalf of the entire EA SPORTS FC development team, thank you for taking the time to read about Ultimate Team in EA SPORTS FC™ 24! With women’s football, the ability to take your players on upgrade journeys in Evolutions, PlayStyles taking Player Items beyond ratings and a focus on key community upgrades, we believe we’re in for an exciting year in Ultimate Team.
We can’t wait for you to get your hands on the game and to hear what you think.
See you on the pitch!
EA SPORTS FC™ 24 is available on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC and Switch
Stay in the conversation on all things EA SPORTS FC™ by following us on our official X, Instagram, and YouTube, our Dev X channel @EASFCDIRECT, on the EA SPORTS FC™ Tracker and participating in the official EA SPORTS FC™ Forums.