EA Sports FC 27 Review: Better Football, Same Old Shop
FC 27 finally makes you defend with your own hands, and the pitch is better for it. The Grounds is a thin new hub and FUT is as greedy as ever. Score: 7/10.
Luka Perić
Saturday, September 26, 2026
Every September I tell myself I'll skip this one, and every September I end up playing until 2 a.m. EA Sports FC 27 is out worldwide since September 25 (Ultimate Edition owners got in on the 18th) on PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PC, Switch 2, and in cut-down form on PS4, Xbox One and the original Switch. Standard is $69.99 / £69.99, Ultimate $99.99 - so, full price, as always.
The question is the same one it's been for years: is there enough new here to justify buying the same game again? This time the answer is closer to yes than usual.
On the pitch: finally, your hands matter
The biggest change is one you feel within ten minutes. EA has dialled back the automation. AI teammates no longer quietly do your defending for you - in Ultimate Team's competitive setting the CPU-assisted defending has been nerfed, and you actually have to pick the right man and step in yourself. Tackles have more weight and fewer canned animations, so a shoulder-to-shoulder duel looks like one. Through balls need proper aim, and teammates make new curved runs that keep them onside instead of drifting offside every second attack.
The result is football that rewards build-up play. Keepers are also a bit shakier on corners, so crosses are a real weapon again. I like that. What I don't like: player switching still goes haywire in scrappy box situations, and CPU teammates still make the occasional baffling decision. And in FUT the pace gets so end-to-end that 5-4 scorelines feel normal.
Career Mode: small, smart changes
Training plans are gone, replaced by a dynamic rating system that tracks form, fitness and morale. Transfers now run through a phone-style interface with a tension meter during negotiations, clubs push back more realistically, and random events pop up - a rival's player suddenly becoming available, for instance. It's the most fun I've had managing in years, even if the rivalry system is barebones and the AI's transfer logic occasionally wobbles.
The Grounds: a lobby pretending to be a mode
The headline feature is The Grounds, a small open-world social hub (PS5, Xbox Series, PC and Switch 2 only) with three districts inspired by football culture in the UK, France and Argentina. You make an avatar, play 1v1 to 4v4 street games, Rush, Clubs, and minigames like Balloon Ball and Bucketball. Alex Hunter is back - but only as your guide, not in a new story campaign. It's pleasant for an evening with friends, but right now it's mostly a pretty menu with cosmetics shops on every corner.
Ultimate Team: generous at first, then the usual
FUT starts you off with more coins and tradeable items, and the new Gallery - themed card sets you fill with your club's players - is a smart way to give old cards a purpose. But the structure hasn't changed: the fastest path to a great team still runs through your wallet.
Who is it for?
If you skipped FC 26, this is a good year to jump back in - the on-pitch changes are real. If you only play FUT, you already know what you're signing up for. If you're after Career Mode, it's genuinely better.
Verdict: The best-playing EA football game in a while, wrapped in the same aggressive monetisation and a new mode that isn't finished yet.
Score: 7/10
Image: Sport Lisboa e Benfica / CC BY 3.0, source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Arthur_Cabral,_atacante_do_Benfica,_em_promo%C3%A7%C3%A3o_ao_EAFC_24.jpg