EA Sports FC 26 is upon us with the game launching in early access on Friday, Sept. 19 for Ultimate Edition owners.
As part of the buildup for any Ultimate Team cycle, fans are hard at work to theorize the best starter squads in the game—which players work best in certain positions, which PlayStyles best suit certain roles and more.
For those who indulge and spend money on the game via microtransactions, it’s all about fielding a high-end squad on release. That doesn’t necessarily mean the best team in the game, but one that includes the highest rated players possible in every position.
Let’s take a look at the highest rated team at the start of FC 26 Ultimate Team—all while trying to get as much chemistry as possible without using Icons.
Worth mentioning, achieving this team will be extremely difficult at launch.
The Highest Rated EA Sports FC 26 Team at Launch: All Gold Cards
- Formation: 3-1-4-2
- Total Chemistry: 29/33
- GK: Gianluigi Donnarumma / Manchester City (89)
- CB: Virgil van Dijk / Liverpool (90)
- CB: Mapi León / Barcelona (89)
- CB: Irene Paredes / Barcelona (88)
- LM: Kylian Mbappé / Real Madrid (91)
- CM: Aitana Bonmatí / Barcelona (91)
- CDM: Rodri / Manchester City (91)
- CM: Alexia Putellas / Barcelona (91)
- RM: Mohamed Salah / Liverpool (91)
- ST: Erling Haaland / Manchester City (90)
- ST: Ousmane Dembélé / Paris Saint-Germain (90)
There are some variations at certain positions like Alisson or Thibaut Courtois at goalkeeper given both players are also 89 rated, but this formation fits in the highest rated players as best as possible. Sure, players could venture outside of the norm and play certain players out of position given Irene Paredes is 88 overall, but that would greatly affect squad chemistry.
It’s also worth mentioning most players don’t opt for a three center back formation. Though, for highest rated squad purposes, having three center backs raises the overall squad given Sakina Karchaoui and Achraf Hakimi are among the highest rated wing backs at 87 and 89 respectively.
There are some additional variations to get other players in for one extra chemistry. In total, the gold squad caps out at 90 overall without including a bench.
Adding Icons to the situation is going to greatly raise the cap, but obtaining those cards will be even more difficult at launch. As well, Team of the Week 1 could throw an immediate wrench into overall ratings as well.
Until the web app launches, this is the best all-gold team you can build in FC 26.
READ THE LATEST FC 26 NEWS, ANALYSIS AND MORE
This article was originally published on www.si.com as The Highest Rated EA Sports FC 26 Ultimate Team Squad at Launch.
