FUT gets a complete overhaul in EA Sports FC 26: new tournaments, weekly challenges and competitive play

EA Sports FC 26 introduces radical changes to Ultimate Team mode, with qualifying tournaments, weekly challenges, and a more competitive focus from day one.

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The new football season is about to kick off, and with it, EA Sports FC 26 is set to revolutionize its most-played mode: Football Ultimate Team. EA has shared an in-depth look at all the changes and new features coming to this edition, and it’s clear that we’re in for a real evolution of FUT.

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From this year on, the experience will be marked by more personalization, new ways to compete, and improvements focused on gameplay. Classic tournaments, live events, Gauntlet-style challenges, and specific adjustments to offer more precise and fluid gameplay are just some of the highlights of the new FUT.

Confirmed changes in Ultimate Team of FC 26

EA Sports FC 26 not only improves the content but also the way you play and progress in FUT. Here are the main new features:

New modes and events

• Live Events: themed events with limited time, special rules, customized requirements, and exclusive rewards. There will be tournament-style modes and new Gauntlets, where you’ll have to form different teams to overcome each round.

• Classic Tournaments: the direct elimination format returns with new entry criteria, phase prizes, and weekly limitations.

• Challenges: no eliminations, but with increasing difficulty. The more victories you chain with different squads, the better the rewards.

Changes in gameplay structure

• Rivals and Champions revamped: Playoffs are gone. Now you access FUT Champions directly by reaching a certain division in Rivals. The Challengers level is also added, an intermediate level for those not yet in the top divisions.

• Dynamic reward system: random challenges appear before each match, giving you immediate rewards, even if you don’t win.

• Limited Checkpoints: prevent you from getting stuck in high divisions. If you lose too many games, you can drop down faster to balance the level.

Competitive gameplay improvements

For the first time, FUT will have exclusive gameplay adjustments, known as Competitive Gameplay, focused on three pillars: responsiveness, consistency, and control.
These changes will reduce randomness in rebounds and goalkeepers, improve first-touch passing and shooting, and adjust resistance to favor active defense.

Evolutions and personalization

• Evolving goalkeepers for the first time and keeping the visual style of your players when upgrading them.

• New custom rules and formats in events, with challenges that force you to create squads by nationality, chemistry, or position.

EA Sports FC 26 launches on September 19th in Ultimate Edition and September 26th in Standard Edition. These new features will be available from launch, with more details in the pre-launch update. If FUT is your favorite mode, get ready: this year everything changes.