Following the FC 24 Ultimate Team deep dive, EA have just revealed more details on how the new Ultimate Team season will unfold.
With the official launch just around the corner, EA devs announced a few key changes that all Ultimate Team fans should know about going forward. Here’s what you need to know:
Ultimate Team Seasons
Seasons play a crucial role in Ultimate Team, serving as the primary means to unlock rewards and customize squads. A new Seasons timeline will introduce varied Seasons throughout the year, differing in length, to synchronize Season Progress with Ultimate Team Campaigns, beginning with “Welcome to the Club”.
The developers saw untapped potential in Seasons in Ultimate Team 23 and made updates focusing on three areas:
- Providing rewards that are relevant to ongoing activities within Ultimate Team, offering key choices impacting squad building.
- Offering diverse ways to unlock progress in Ultimate Team, allowing players to play in their preferred mode.
- Giving a clear overview of weekly activities and upcoming events in Ultimate Team for both new and existing players.
Previously, Campaign Swaps and ICON Swaps were popular but could be complex for new players and challenging for existing players who forgot to redeem rewards. Integrating Swaps rewards into Season Progress is believed to help players better understand and track their progress each season as they build their teams.
Champions & Rivals Rewards Updates
Seasons are central in Ultimate Team 24, and Squad Battles, Rivals, and Champions modes will now feature weekly Seasonal XP rewards, aiding progress on the Seasonal Ladder. Here are the most important changes:
Champions:
- Rewards will be updated throughout the year to remain meaningful.
- Ultimate Team Champions Player Items (Red Picks) will be replaced by equivalent value rewards at launch but will appear periodically throughout the year.
Rivals:
- Rewards in Rivals will also be revised, especially in Division 2 and above, to incentivize play in higher divisions.
- Champions Players earned in the Elite Division will be replaced with equivalent value rewards.
Squad Battles:
- Match halves are reduced to 4 minutes from 6, and the total number of matches counting towards weekly rank is reduced to 32 from 40.
These changes aim to optimize player experience by balancing rewards and difficulties, incentivizing play in higher divisions, and maintaining engagement by offering relevant rewards throughout the year.
Team of the Week Changes
The Team of the Week (TOTW) campaign in Ultimate Team 24 will see enhancements and updates throughout the season to keep it appealing and relevant with three key updates:
- Enhanced Upgrades for Lower Rated Players: Lower-rated OVR players will receive significant upgrades, ensuring all TOTW players will be at least 80+ OVR from launch.
- Balanced Upgrades Across All Ranges: Players across all OVR ranges may receive proportionally larger upgrades in key stats like Pace or Dribbling to maintain balance with other content released simultaneously.
- Featured TOTW Items Upgrades: Like the previous year, Featured TOTW items will be eligible for larger upgrades, including improvements in Weak Foot & Skill Moves. These upgrades will persist to the player’s subsequent TOTW versions. PlayStyles are planned to be introduced in the near future in order to infuse more personality into Featured TOTW Players.
Player Programs
Player Programs refer to regular recurring content outside of Campaign content. In the first season, “Welcome to the Club,” the focus is on enabling starter squads from global football leagues. Squad Foundations will be released from various global leagues, and players can acquire Squad Foundations Players through Objectives, SBCs, and Season Progress choices. Some of the key player programs include
- Showdowns: Highlight key match-ups from world football where two players compete for a +2 OVR increase to their item.
- Team of the Week (TOTW): Continues to celebrate standout performances in world football, including those from the top 5 women’s leagues.
- Dynamic Duos: Introduced to facilitate squad building by releasing two special players from the same club.
- Player Moments, Flashbacks & End of an Era: Continue to celebrate players’ careers, highlighting standout moments, prolonged greatness, or entire careers.
Campaigns are integral to Ultimate Team, and women’s footballers will be regularly included in key releases. Women’s players will be available as part of Campaign squads, in the pack player pool of items, as Objectives, or as SBC rewards, similar to non-top 5 men’s leagues.
The first major campaign is set to debut on September 29 with UEFA Road to the Knockouts promo.
Ultimate Team 24 will feature enriched content like never before, including Player Programs and Campaigns, focusing on both men’s and women’s football. New additions and expansions, such as Dynamic Duos and Showdowns, will offer diverse and inclusive content, celebrating players and matches from around the world, and providing varied and engaging experiences for the players.
