New Ultimate Team features in FC25
Every year, the most highly anticipated news about the new release is always for Ultimate Team. EA has released new information about the upcoming release of FC25. This includes new features, the introduction of the 5v5 Rush mode, deeper strategic elements with Player Roles and FC IQ, and the inclusion of community-requested features.
Rush
Rush is a brand-new 5v5 gameplay experience designed for fast-paced, small-sided matches. It aims to provide a social football experience while maintaining the core gameplay mechanics of an 11v11 match.
This new mode allows players to bring a favourite player item from their Ultimate Team club and compete in 5v5 matches. Players will earn Rush Points, and you can drop in solo and team up with people you don’t know, or you can team up with friends to make the experience even more social.
Rush Events
Rush events come with specific entry requirements, such as player rarity, attributes, or regional restrictions. These events provide an additional layer of challenge in squad building.
Rush Squad Building
Players collaboratively select team members within 90 seconds. Duplicate players are not allowed, ensuring unique team compositions.
There is an opportunity to gain bonus Rush Points by completing the squad building requirements, in the video below you can see that on the right hand side that when a segment (Block) is complete it will go green and activate the Rush Point bonuses. This means it will be far more efficient for earning Rush Points to follow the bonus objectives.
Earning Rush Points
Rush Points are the primary way you will complete Weekly Objectives and earn rewards in Rush. They can be earned both on the pitch and in squad building by completing block requirements with your team.
The fastest way to earn Rush Points is to win matches with friends in your group, but there are many ways to earn Rush Points. These are Winning a match, Playing a match, Playing with friends, Completing Blocks and Winning multiple Rush matches in a row.
Rush Blocks
Blocks are optional challenges during the squad building phase, offering additional ways to earn Rush Points through various team composition and player attribute requirements.
Block requirements can target player Attributes, team composition, and more.
Blocks can award your team with, Rush Points, Rush Point Multipliers, Bonus Rush Points on win and Bonus Rush Points per goal
Rush Objectives
A weekly Rush Objective Group offers rewards based on earned Rush Points. Participating in events and completing block requirements increases Rush Points for you and your team. Additional objectives may also provide extra rewards.
Rush Matchmaking
The matchmaking system in Rush mode considers individual and team skill levels, ensuring balanced and competitive matches. If a player leaves mid-match, their character will be controlled by AI to maintain game continuity.
FC IQ
This is the most significant change to tactics in a decade, bringing modern football strategies into FC. It uses real-world data to drive authenticity and give players more control over their teams. This represents a major overhaul of the existing tactics, player roles, and formations from previous years.
FC IQ is powered by AI and data from the greatest teams in football, aiming to modernise tactics and positioning to create greater variety and authenticity in gameplay.
Manager Presets
Manager Items now come with Tactical Presets that reflect real-world tactical preferences, influencing how the team plays. These presets allow players to try new tactical setups without extensive customization.
For example, should you pack a Pep Guardiola manager item and you make him your active manager you will be able to select his preset custom tactics and save them to a slot meaning you get to set up and play the way he does with his current Man City team.
Player Roles
Player Roles will guide the way every player thinks and behaves on the pitch. It will dictate how players move off the ball. Player Roles are replacing Work Rates from FC24 and games before, this is the new core tactical and position system for FC.
There are 3-5 roles per position, totalling 31 unique role, these are:
- GK: Goalkeeper, Sweeper Keeper
- LB/RB: Fullback, Falseback, Wingback, Attacking Wingback
- CB: Defender, Stopper, Ball Playing Defender
- CDM: Holding, Centre Half, Deep Lying Playmaker
- CM: Box-to-Box, Holding, Deep Lying Playmaker, Playmaker, Half-Winger
- LM/RM: Winger, Wide Midfielder, Wide Playmaker, Inside Forward
- CAM: Playmaker, Shadow Striker, Half Winger
- RW/LW: Winger, Inside Forward, Wide Playmaker
- ST: Advance Forward, Poacher, False 9, Target Forward
Role Focus
Each role has 1-3 Focus’ per role, what a focus does is allow you specify how you want the player to play within that role, for example if you have a CM, and you grant them the Playmaker Role, you can set their Focus to be either Attack or Roaming, this determine how your CM Playmaker will move off of the ball.
Here are a few example of Positions, Player Roles with a Focus to try and make things a bit easier to understand, these will be shown as Position – Role – Focus
- CM – Playmaker – Roaming
- CM – Playmaker – Attack
- CM – Box To Box – Balanced
- CM – Half Winger – Attack
- CM – Holding – Defend
As you can see, simply having a player in CM is only a part of how the player will move in game, you will need to specify a Role for that player and then specify a Focus too, which as you can image adds a huge amount of variety to building your tactics.
Role Familiarity
For each Player Role, a player will have Role Familiarity, this means how well a player can play in the Role which you have selected, and this will have a major impact in how your player performs in game.
Upon Launch there are 4 types of Role Familiarity, these are:
- [Role] – A base role means the player can play in that Role.
- [Role+] – Indicated with a ‘+’ sign meaning this player has mastered the Role.
- Every player in FC 25 has at least one Role+.
- [Role++] – A ‘++’ sign indicates the player is a world-class player in this role.
- Out of Position – The yellow exclamation mark indicates a simplified version of the Role when the player is out of position.
Personalise and Share
Tactics will now be shareable via a short code that you can show your friends or followers. Adding a tactic from a code can be done easily in-game and in the FC Companion.
Formation and Position Changes
A number of adjustments to formations and positions. The CF and LWB/RWB positions have been removed.
The following formations have been removed or adjusted:
| Removed | 4-4-1-1 (Other variations are available) |
| 4-3-3 (5) | |
| 5-2-2-1 | |
| Adjusted | 4-3-2-1 (2 CF replaced by 2 CAM) |
| 5-3-2 (LWB/RWB replaced by LB/RB) | |
| 5-2-3 (LWB/RWB replaced by LB/RB) | |
| 5-2-1-2 (LWB/RWB replaced by LB/RB) | |
| 3-4-2-1 (2 CF replaced by 2 CAM) |
New Stadium and Match Experience
A new state-of-the-art stadium has been introduced, designed to enhance the match day atmosphere with larger away sections and more immersive pre-match sequences.
New broadcast elements highlight key players, tactical decisions, and squad compositions.
These sequences showcase team chemistry, player debuts, and in-form players during matches, enhancing the overall viewing experience.
Cosmetic Evolutions
Players can personalize Player Items with new visual elements, animations, and sound effects, reflecting their achievements in the game.
Customization Options:
- Add visual elements, change colours, and add animations or sound effects to Player Items.
- Cosmetic upgrades reflect in-game accomplishments but do not stack; new upgrades replace old ones.
- Evolutions upgrading attributes may include cosmetic changes.
Unlocking Cosmetic Upgrades:
- Available through the main Evolutions page with categorized tabs.
- Can be activated using UT Coins, FC Points, Objectives, or rewards.
Flexible Player Item Evolutions:
- EA SPORTS FC 25 allows more flexibility in upgrading Player Items.
- Evolutions have maximum limits on certain attributes but allow upgrades to other attributes if requirements are met.
Community Improvements
Duplicate Storage & SBCs
A new storage system for untradeable duplicate players has been introduced, allowing players to store duplicates in SBC Storage instead of quick selling them. SBC Storage can hold up to 100 Untradeable Items.
Division Rivals
Points-Based Rewards
The reward system has been updated to a points-based system, awarding points for wins and draws, ensuring efforts in close matches are rewarded.
Checkpoints & Relegation
The number of checkpoints has been reduced, and relegation has been introduced in the highest divisions to maintain competitive balance.
Division 1 and Division 2 will have no Checkpoints and losing a match at the beginning of a Division will result in being relegated to the end of the previous Division.
Legacy Division Placement
Starting divisions in FC25 are based on the highest division achieved in FC24, allowing players to reach suitable divisions faster.
The image below shows how your progress from FC24 will be carried over to FC25:
Live Friendlies
Matchmaking is now based on form, similar to the Champions mode, ensuring players face opponents with similar win/loss records.
Live Friendlies matchmaking is now based on form. This is a similar system to Champions, but will take into account your wins and losses across all Live Friendlies.
It has also been confirmed that you will be able to work towards evo’ing your players in this game mode.
Contract Removal
To streamline gameplay and reduce the amount of general management, players and managers will no longer need Contracts. As a result, Contract Items have been removed from the game.
This was a summary of everything EA shared in their Ultimate Team Deep Dive, be sure to check out all the other FC25 articles on the FUTWIZ website.
