EA SPORTS FC 26 EA Sports FC 27 - Gameplay Deep Dive (30th July 2026)

Welcome to the EA SPORTS FC™ 27 Gameplay Deep Dive.

My name is Gilliard Lopes, Principal Gameplay Designer for EA SPORTS FC™. On behalf of our entire team, I am thrilled to share the new Gameplay features and improvements coming to FC 27. Let's dive in!

Across every game mode, greater gameplay control is at the heart of EA SPORTS FC™ 27.

Community feedback consistently highlighted a desire for less automation and greater control over key moments, so we've made a series of gameplay updates that reward player skill and decision-making on the pitch.

EA SPORTS FC™ 27 creates more opportunities for you to be the difference. That means you will be able to experience more manual defending, smarter attacking movement, and more attacking variety from corner kicks and crosses, all of which have been driven by your feedback.

Defending

AI Defending (Auto-Tackles)

The following changes to AI Defending only apply to Competitive gameplay. For more information about changes to Authentic Gameplay, stay tuned for our Career Mode Deep Dive coming soon.

One of the most significant gameplay shifts in FC 27 is to AI Defending. We’re reducing the influence of AI-controlled defenders, putting more power into the hands of the manual defender.

Previously, AI-controlled defenders could automatically attempt to win the ball when a dribbler came close enough to them. In FC 27, defenders will now rely more on their positioning and support the play until you take control and choose when to make a tackle.

AI-controlled defenders can still gain possession when a loose ball comes within reach or when a dribbler runs directly into them. In some cases, the trapping animation may involve the defender extending a leg, but the defender is reacting to the ball rather than initiating a tackle.

With this change, we want tackling to be an intentional player-led action, while your AI teammates will now support the play instead of winning possession outright for you.

We’ve also reduced AI defensive reach for interceptions. A manually-controlled defender will be able to reach further than an AI-controlled defender, encouraging you to switch to the player actively defending instead of relying on AI teammates to win possession.

AI defenders will now play more of a supporting role through their on-pitch positioning, giving you more opportunities to step in and defend manually.

Manual Defending Improvements

Reducing the impact of AI defending is only one part of the defensive changes coming in FC 27. Improving the effectiveness of manual defending is the other crucial piece we’re focusing on in order to create more rewarding defensive experiences.

In FC 27, manually-controlled defenders have increased jockey speed compared to FC 26, helping them keep up with quick attacking movements more effectively. Additionally, we’ve also increased the range of manually-triggered stand tackles compared to FC 26. We want to better reward you for reading the dribbler, switching to the optimal defender, and positioning yourself well so you feel more capable of winning the ball.

Our goal with this game is for players who manually switch, jockey, time tackles, and position themselves effectively to increase their chances of winning possession. These improvements put greater emphasis on manual defending and the decisions you make throughout a match – which is something we aim to preserve throughout the FC 27 life cycle.

Teammate Contain

Teammate Contain has also been adjusted to match our new approach to defending.

When performing Teammate Contain, AI teammates will mark the ball carrier from a slightly longer distance than before, requiring the user to switch to them and manually defend if they want to press the dribbler more effectively.

Corner Kicks and Crossing

Corner Kick Improvements

Corners in FC 27 are designed to give you more control over the moments before the ball arrives in the box. Previously, players had fewer ways to influence direct deliveries, which meant many opted to take corners short instead.

After targeting your desired area for delivery, the camera will shift towards the box, giving you a brief window to control attacking players. During this window, you can move, switch players, make runs, shield, or use a new mechanic called Avoidance (more details below) to jostle for position before the ball arrives in the box.

Note that this change does not apply to short corner kicks. After a short corner kick is taken, you will revert back to your gameplay camera of choice.

Free Movement and Positioning

In FC 27, players contesting for corner kicks in the box will no longer automatically move into the best position to connect with the ball.

It’s up to you to time the run, attack the space, and make first contact manually. Not reaching the right position could mean the ball evades everyone, but when executed well, the outcome is intended to feel more rewarding and result in more varied finishes as players try to make contact with the ball.

Shielding and Avoidance

During the window before a ball is delivered, attackers can manually trigger a new mechanic called Avoidance. This allows any attacker or defender you control to become more evasive, moving through crowded areas without getting blocked by opposing players. To trigger Avoidance during Corner Kicks

• Hold R1 || Hold RB

Pairing this with Shielding allows an attacking player to hold their position after creating space and prevent opponents from stepping in front, creating more attacking opportunities from corner kicks.

Crossing Rework

We’re also adding more crossing control in FC 27. Previously, crosses had more predictable trajectories and similar finishing animations because they were heavily assisted.

Crosses will now be delivered into space more often rather than directly onto a specific player, allowing for more attacking variety.

Your aim and power now have a much bigger impact on where your cross lands, meaning it can miss everyone if it isn’t placed with precision. When darting down the wing and identifying space, we want success to be more about your ability to aim and play the ball in front of your teammate, rather than locking onto their current position.

Finishing Variety and Headers

These updates enable more variety when heading and finishing from both corner kicks and crosses. We want the battle for ball contact to become more skill-based and lead to more authentic outcomes. We expect that attackers may need to stretch, dive, adjust their run, or attack the ball from different angles, resulting in a wider range of finishing possibilities.

In FC 27, connecting with a header from crosses and corners requires greater precision, making clean headers less frequent. The tradeoff is that when you do make clean contact, headers are more accurate than in FC 26 and feel more rewarding.

Attacking Spatial Awareness and Creative Runs

Attacking Spatial Awareness Our updated Attacking Spatial Awareness makes AI attackers more aware of the space around them and how they move into it. Previously, some attacking movements could feel too predictable, with players not always reacting quickly to developing attacks or moving with the right level of urgency. In certain situations, attackers would also run into crowded areas or struggle to find more effective space. In FC 27, they now make smarter, more contextual curved runs that better support each attacking move.

Triggered Curved Runs & Pass & Follow Runs

EA SPORTS FC™ 27 introduces new manually triggered run options designed to give you more control over off-ball movement.

While a regular triggered run sends the player forward in a direct path, the new Triggered Curved Runs allow them to curve their movement into open space, giving you a dynamic way to bend around defenders and get behind the opposition. The trade-off is that these runs may take longer to complete because of the longer and more curved path they follow. To perform Triggered Curve Runs

• Tap L1 + R1 || LB + RB

Similarly to the existing Pass & Go, new Pass & Follow Runs are made by a player who has just passed the ball to a teammate. The passer will then follow with a curved run to exploit available space, choosing to overlap or cut inside depending on the situation. Again, the trade-off is that these runs may take longer to complete due to their curved pathing. To perform Pass & Follow Runs

• L1 + R1 + X || LB + RB + A

Both new run types are influenced by available space. Rather than continuing straight up the pitch or moving into crowded areas, players will look to curve their runs toward more effective attacking positions.

Limited Distance for Manually Triggered Runs

Another important change is that manually triggered runs will no longer continue indefinitely. Previously you could trigger a run while close to a player, move the ball a long distance away, and rely on that player to continue their run indefinitely. This sometimes caused inauthentic attacking situations.

In EA SPORTS FC™ 27, manually triggered runs only continue for a limited distance, with the player then stopping and returning to occupy space or fulfill their positional responsibilities. If you want the player to continue their run, you can always trigger the command again but only if you keep playing within the range of the running player.

The goal of this change is to make attacking actions feel more intentional, reducing unrealistic situations while giving you greater control over your teammates’ movement.

Improved Creative Runs

In FC 27, we are also improving attacking runs that happen without a manual trigger, taking into account available space, defensive positioning, and the offside line.

For example, a winger may run parallel to the defensive line while waiting for a pass. Once the pass is made, they can curve forward into the box because they no longer need to avoid being offside. This helps attacking movement feel less limited to the player's role, more flexible, and more authentic .

As we mentioned previously, all of these changes are aimed at making attacking movement more intentional. You will still have powerful tools to create runs, but you will need to manage those runs more actively. If you want a run to continue, you'll need to actively trigger it again rather than relying on an unlimited triggered run.

Passing Updates

Through Passes Update

In FC 27, ground and lobbed through passes no longer heavily assist you by steering toward open lanes away from your aim. Passes now strictly follow your directional input, rewarding deliberate aim on attack and giving manual defenders a fair chance to read the play and intercept.

Dinked Passes Update

In FC 27, we have moved both ground and through Dinked Passes to a fully manual system. Success now relies heavily on your individual precision with aiming and power, raising the skill ceiling for these specific pass types. This adjustment aims to ensure that attacking creativity and defensive anticipation are more evenly matched when utilizing these refined passing mechanics.

Off-Balance Dribbling

In FC 27, the world’s best dribblers can now ride challenges and maintain control under pressure through off-balance dribbling. Driven by Balance, Agility and Dribbling Attributes, this allows certain players to continue dribbling even when they are knocked off balance.

When a dribbler who has the required Attributes is hit by a collision, bump, or shoulder challenge, they will enter an off-balance dribbling animation. During this animation, the player looks like they are stumbling, but you will still have control and can continue moving the player as they take a dribble touch in the chosen direction to keep possession.

Please note that this feature will only be available on PlayStation®5, Xbox Series X|S, PC, and Nintendo Switch™ 2.

PlayStyles and Attributes

We heard your feedback about how certain PlayStyles could feel too impactful in certain situations. Our goal for FC 27 is to refine the balance between PlayStyles and Attributes so that both have a meaningful impact on player performance without feeling overpowered.

Here are all the PlayStyle updates coming in EA SPORTS FC™ 27:

Finesse Shot

• We’ve updated Finesse Shot to make player attributes play a bigger role in shot outcome
• Spin, animation speed and off-angle effectiveness now scale more consistently based on the player taking the shot, reducing the gap between base attributes, Finesse Shot, and Finesse Shot+.

Technical Dribbler

• Reduced the performance gap between PlayStyle and PlayStyle+
• Playstyle+ still offers smoother and more responsive dribbling, but the difference between PlayStyle+ and PlayStyle is now less pronounced to create better balance between tiers.

Intercept

• Increased reach and improved chances of retaining possession of the ball when performing an interception for Non-PlayStyle players who have a high Interceptions Attribute
• Results in the reduction in the performance gap between PlayStyles and Attributes.

Rapid

• Slightly reduced the speed boost to dribbling animations provided by the PlayStyle and PlayStyle+
• Animation speed for non-Playstyle players remains unchanged, resulting in a smaller gap in animation speed between non-PlayStyle and PlayStyle players

Quick Step

• Reduced the speed boost applied during dribbling and accelerating for PlayStyle and PlayStyle+ to create better balance between tiers
• This gives more importance to the Acceleration attribute

Pinged Pass

• Removed the effect that slightly reduced trap error on the pass receiver
• This change ensures that the PlayStyle primarily enhances pass delivery rather than providing an additional first-touch advantage to an unrelated player

Tiki Taka

• Removed the animation playback speed boost and the effect that slightly reduced trap error on the pass receiver
• This refocuses the PlayStyle on quick combination play without disproportionately improving first-touch control

Jockey

• Increased jockey sprint acceleration for non-PlayStyle players and reduced the sprint acceleration boost applied when exiting Jockey for both the PlayStyle and PlayStyle+
• Both these changes reduce the gap between PlayStyles and base attributes

Precision Header

• Reduced the gap between PlayStyle and PlayStyle+ by rebalancing the boost in accuracy granted by this PlayStyle

Low Driven

• Removed the shot speed boost previously applied to low-driven shots
• Shot velocity now scales purely based on core shooting Attributes and input power, for more consistent and attribute-driven results
• The Playstyle and PlayStyle+ still add an accuracy boost

In FC 27 we’re introducing more control and expressive gameplay, giving you greater influence over attacking and defending. Whether you're winning the ball through manual defending, opening up a back line with smarter movement, or scoring a diving header from a corner kick, we want every match to offer more variety and skill-based outcomes on the pitch.

We can’t wait to see how you master these new gameplay features when EA SPORTS FC™ 27 starts rolling out on 18 September 2026 and look forward to seeing you on the pitch.