EA SPORTS FC 24 Release Date and Exclusive Features: 7 Things to Know

FIFA, now known as EA Sports FC, is a gaming series that has divided fans yearly when a new sequel is released. You will either love it or hate it. After the disappointing instalment of FIFA 23, accumulating more negatives than positives, EA decided to part ways with FIFA, ending their memorable and long-lasting 30-year partnership. It was a shocking turn of events to the community as debates and speculations began heating up around whether there was a sequel to FIFA 23.

After months of keeping us fans in the dark, EA announced a short announcement trailer to their official site on the 11th of July and an official reveal live stream on the 13th of July. Player.me FIFA enthusiasts joined the live stream and left quite satisfied with the details and features revealed. After compiling and summarising the live stream, we bring you a listicle regarding EA SPORTS FC 24 Release Date and Exclusive Features: 7 Things to Know.

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EA SPORTS FC 24 Live Stream Reveal

EA revealed the successor to FIFA 23, titled “EA SPORTS FC 24”, on the 13th of July in a star-studded launch event in Amsterdam. The event featured the CEO of EA, Andrew Wilson, the President and Vice-President of EA SPORTS FC 24, football legends such as Didier Drogba and Luis Figo, and last but not least, current football superstar Erling Haaland. The live stream was 35 minutes long and depicts releases and features we will list below.

1) EA SPORTS FC 24 Release Date

In the live stream, EA announced that EA SPORTS FC 24 will release on the 29th of September, but people who pre-order the FC 24 Ultimate Edition can play the game a week earlier, on the 22nd of September. EA Play subscribers also have the honour of the early access privilege.

FIFA Edition	Release Date
FIFA 20	September 24, 2019
FIFA 21	August 14, 2020
FIFA 22	September 27, 2021
FIFA 23	September 27, 2022

For those curious about previous FIFA release dates, we compiled a table of the last four instalments of FIFA.

Also Read: 7 Best New Games of July 2023

2) EA SPORTS FC 24 Covers

Winning the World Cup pales in comparison when being featured as the cover star of a game, just ask Erling Haaland as he is now the cover star of EA SPORTS FC 24 despite not qualifying for the World Cup and ahead of winning players like Mbappe and Messi. Of course, we meant it as a joke, but we still salute you and congratulate Haaland for the achievement.

Erling Haaland will be featured as the solo cover on the EA SPORTS FC 24 Standard Edition and the central figure with 30 other footballers, with legends like Drogba, Zidane and Beckham in the EA SPORTS FC 24 Ultimate Edition. 

In his words, “Every Footballer dreams of this. Proud to be on the cover for the first season of a new era”. His feature as the cover star sparked little to no disagreements as he was instrumental in Manchester City’s treble-winning season. 

3) EA SPORTS FC 24 Price, Editions, Pre-Ordering and Early Access

EA SPORTS FC 24 is following its predecessors’ track in releasing two editions for the game — the Standard Edition and the Ultimate Edition. Attached below is a table explaining the differences in exclusives, price and many more of the two editions.

EA FC Pre-Order Bonuses	Standard Edition	Ultimate Edition
Price	$69.99	$99.99
5 Star Coach Available to Hire in Manager Career	Yes	Yes
Unlocked Playstyles Slot in Clubs	Yes	Yes
2 Ambassador Loan Player Pick Items (5 Matches)	Yes	Yes
Ultimate Team Cover Star Loan Player (10 Matches)	Yes	Yes
Dual Entitlement	Yes	Yes
Nike X EA Sports FC Ultimate Team Kit	No	Yes
4,600 FIFA Points	No	Yes
Access to Nike Ultimate Team Campaign	No	Yes
Nike Ultimate Team Campaign Loan Player (24 Matches)	No	Yes
7 Day Early Access	No	Yes
Team of the Week 1 Ultimate Team Player Item	No	Yes

If you are having trouble considering which edition to buy, simply consider if you want to spend an extra $30 for a week of early access. Here is a tip, if you want to play the game ASAP and not waste the extra $30, you can subscribe to EA Play, which lets you play for 10 hours during a trial, and all of your progress should carry over to the final game. EA Play is $4.99 a month or $29.99 for a year, and you save 10% on games and in-game purchases.

If you have decided to pre-order the game, beware of fraudulent places like eBay promising you early access. Head to the official site to prevent any mishappenings from occurring.

4) EA SPORTS FC 24 Consoles

EA SPORTS FC 24 may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but the company EA do keep a smile on players using older platforms such as PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. We reckon it will take a few more years before EA decides to discard us. Before the unveiling, we apologise to PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 users, as EA deemed them too old. 

Moving on, the platforms available to play are the Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Xbox One, Xbox One X, Xbox One S, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4 Pro, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 4 Slim, Windows PC and Nintendo Switch.

5) EA SPORTS FC 24 Features

Every year, fans demand that EA listen to their request to implement their ideas and features into the game. During the live stream, the president and Vice president stated that they heard our demands and cries. Who knows? Maybe your ideas have already been accepted and will be announced soon.

Due to the limited time constraint of the event, there was nothing out of the ordinary in the features of EA SPORTS FC 24. We have our standard: 

• Ultimate Team
• Career Mode
• Pro Clubs and VOLTA Football

Furthermore, the number of teams, players, and stadiums has increased from the previous FIFA, with more than 19,000 players, 700 teams and 100 stadiums announced during the live stream. So, Ronaldo and Messi fans, fret not, as EA SPORTS FC 24 will include 30 leagues with the inclusion of the Saudi Pro League and MLS. 

However, the most talked about topic after the live stream was the inclusion of female athletes in Ultimate Team. Yes, you heard it right. Ultimate Team will feature female players for the first time.

6) EA SPORTS FC 24 Ultimate Team

In EA SPORTS FC 24 Ultimate Team, the developers took a completely new turn in injecting their ideas into the game. The women’s game has grown more prominent than ever, and EA has rewarded their rise and announced the first-ever men and women Ultimate Team. It is a drastic turn and risk for EA, as many fans are not as supportive as footballers of the idea that women have equal standing and pay to men in real-life football.

However, Player.me supports the concept of a mixed-gender Ultimate Team as it creates much more creativity and a brand-new experience for the game. In EA SPORTS FC 24, you can include famous female footballers like Sam Kerr or Alexia Putellas in your mixed-gender squad. Just imagine Sam Kerr and Mbappe pairing in attack. Furthermore, the game will introduce female Icon cards such as the leading pioneer of women’s football, the Brazilian player Marta.

On top of that, EA SPORTS FC 24 also introduces Evolution and PlayStyle into Ultimate Team. Evolutions allow users to choose players to upgrade after completing a set of objectives. You can improve their skills, PlayStyles, and overall ratings. You can even replace the card appearance with new designs and animated backgrounds. The idea stems from the EVO cards in the NBA 2K franchise.

PlayStyle is a unique ability bestowed upon players, mirroring their real-life achievements. For example, Sam Kerr exhibited enhanced precision when executing finesse long-shots after equipping her unique PlayStyle. While the full extent of the subject remains unclear, we will cover all related news in the future.

7) EA SPORTS FC 24 Mobile and Companion App

In the live stream, EA announced a major change and upgrade to their mobile game, FIFA Mobile. The app is free to play, and you can download the game if your phone meets the requirements.

The mobile version, while robust, is a toned-down version of the game. However, we expect an overhaul of the game, and hopefully, for the better. One final thing, we also expect EA to launch a new companion app for the game sometime before the official launch of the game.

Also Read: FIFA 23 Web App: How to Get an Early Start on Your Ultimate Team?

Final Thoughts

Signs look promising for the new instalment of EA SPORTS FC 24. While it does not tick every box, fans of the series can expect a fresh experience with the inclusion of female athletes into Ultimate Team. With rumours speculating online modes for Career mode and Pro Clubs, who is to say that this may not be the best football game yet?

Frequently Asked Questions

Why Did EA End Their Partnership with FIFA?

While there were many reasons for the split-up, the main reason was the differences in vision over the game’s future. FIFA reportedly sought double the present licensing fee and wanted parameters on their licence, allowing them to pursue partnerships with different video game developers under the FIFA banner. EA obviously did not comply with the outrageous demand and ended their partnership.

Will There Be Changes to Career Mode?

Nothing new was announced on the live stream regarding the Career Mode of EA SPORTS FC 24, but considering the huge demands for improvement of this feature, we can expect something new in the future.

Will Pro Clubs Be Cross-Platform?

Maybe — many fans and players have rallied together for a long time, demanding a cross-platform addition to Pro Clubs. However, seeing improvements made on Ultimate Team, there is hope for a cross-platform feature for Pro Clubs.