There's still hope for FIFA 21 as Team of the Season comes to an end

The end could be in sight for FIFA 21 Ultimate Team as the Team of the Season event is almost at an end.

We're seeing less SBCs, the TOTW has been benched until August and we don't know if any more promos are on the way.

Interest in the game has waned in recent weeks, with many members of the FUT community less than impressed by the content (or lack of it) released.

Is it game over for FIFA 21?

Hit and miss

For the most part, the Team of the Season event has been a largely successful one with some great new content and excellent cards made available.

However, the event got off to a rocky start during the Premier League TOTS week with a dearth of SBC content made available.

After the rocky start, EA released several excellent SBC and Objectives throughout the Bundesliga, La Liga, and Serie A weeks to get fans back onside.

Seemingly out of nowhere the flow of SBCs ran dry during Ligue 1 week, upsetting many in the community that were excited for some new French players to add to their collections.

Instead, MLS retro kits (which admittedly are cool) were introduced, which compared to Team of the Season SBC players is simply not enough at this stage of the season.

The Ultimate Team of the Season should be the final release of the event, but after a mixed bag as far as content is concerned, EA has a job on their hands to maintain community interest.

TOTW replacement

Team of the Week is finished for the year. We knew that over a week ago, yet we still don’t know if it will be replaced, or what it could be replaced by.

We have already speculated as to what could replace Team of the Week, but as nothing arrived on Wednesday, 2 June in place of TOTW 36, we are not convinced it will be replaced.

Even so, the plethora of international football that is coming our way this summer should provide ample opportunity for new performance-based squads to be assembled.

EA could go down a different route altogether. Last season we saw Team of the Week Moments squads released, bringing back some of the best in years gone by.

Ultimate Team of the Week could also be another option for EA to spice things up as players will be hard pushed to improve their squads from regular TOTW selections.

EA has released Ultimate TOTW’s sparingly, usually waiting for special occasions like Black Friday to reap in coins as players splash the cash on packs.

European glory

Fortunately for EA, there is still plenty of football to come this summer with international football set to take centre stage.

There are not one, not two, but three international tournaments taking place this summer, leaving plenty of room for something fresh and exciting.

EURO 2020 is the main event for most with the delayed tournament taking place across Europe in an expanded 24-team format.

While Konami is the official videogame partner of the tournament, EA must produce fresh content around the tournament to avoid serious disappointment among fans.

For us, this is the big make-or-break for FIFA 21 this season.

No EURO 2020 content really would be the end of FIFA 21 Ultimate Team this year, and with the EUROs following on so closely from Team of the Season, it is the perfect time for EA to strike.

South American magic

If EA fails to produce any EURO 2020 content due to licensing issues, then Copa America is the next best option.

South America produces arguably the most exciting and naturally gifted footballers, with many of them among FUT 21’s most popular players.

The likes of Lionel Messi, Neymar, and Luis Suarez will all be on show in the tournament, potentially opening the door for some incredible content.

Man of the Match cards are expected at this stage from all the national tournaments, but so late in the season, these are unlikely to have much impact.

A Copa America-themed promo event would need a sensational set of special cards to maintain engagement, especially if EURO 2020 is a no-show.

Going for gold

The final of the three international competitions to take place is the Concacaf Gold Cup, with the USA’s young guns looking to overthrow Mexico as champions.

The last team to win the Gold Cup that was not Mexico or the USA was Canada back in 2000. Can Alphonso Davies and Jonathan David inspire another shock?

Let’s be real though, if the Gold Cup is the only tournament to be celebrated in Ultimate Team then we may as well call it a day now.

While there will be some fantastic players on show, we can’t see a Gold Cup promo making any waves, potentially a ripple among the North American Ultimate Team contingent.

Last chance saloon

It really is the last chance in the next week or so for EA to keep Ultimate Team going this season.

For fans to keep engaged (or as engaged as they are now) Ultimate TOTS cannot be the end.

EA must produce high-quality content over the next week to accompany the re-released cards, or the community will lose faith in being able to improve their squads.

One point to make note of though is the comparatively low ratings of the TOTS players when looking back at previous years.

Is this a sign that there is in fact more to come?

We certainly hope so, and as we said before, EA must hit the international tournaments hard if they are to truly reward the FUT community.

Looking back

There are two things we also have to remember - firstly, FIFA 21 released later than ever before, arriving on 9 October.

Yes, that may only be a couple of weeks later than usual, but it would be foolish for EA to "drop the ball" and offer the community next to nothing for the remaining four months of its lifespan.

Second, looking back to last year, in the heart of the Coronavirus pandemic, we saw the Summer Heat promo arrive on 17 June - replacing the usual FUTTIES promo, bringing back some of the best cards we'd seen in the game.

This, tied with the TOTS cards not being as sky-high as previous years, can feel the community with hope.

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