In FIFA 22 we have been treated to the best and most expansive offering of Career Mode in recent memory.
Create a Club is a brilliant new feature, and if you haven't tried it we highly recommend you give it a go. It's one of many new additions that truly change the game.
Here are all the details you need to know about FIFA 22 Career Mode.
Latest - Ronaldo takes a hit
Several high-profile Premier League stars have seen their ratings downgraded already this season, including Chelsea's ÂŁ100 million man Romelu Lukaku.
Cristiano Ronaldo is the latest player to see some of his attributes decrease and has also now lost the Acrobat trait too.
Despite his well-documented recent struggles on the pitch, CR7 rolled back the years to score a devastating hat-trick against Spurs and likely earn himself a spot in Team of the Week 26 in Ultimate Team.
Take a closer look at Ronaldo's new FIFA ratings.
Reviews point in the right direction
This is arguably the best FIFA game ever, and it is easy to see why.
FIFA 22 is the first in franchise history to be fully optimised for next-gen consoles, so it looks insane.
It doesn't just look great though, as there are loads of new features available for both the next-gen and current-gen versions of the game.
If you aren't sure about the game just yet, take a look at our in-depth game reviews for different generations of console.
Release Date
EA's latest edition of FIFA was released on Friday, 1 October 2021.
Early Access became available from Monday, 27 September - with the EA Play Trial going live on Wednesday, 22 September.
Career Mode Trailer
The Pitch Notes for Career Mode and trailer are available right here.
You can watch the full trailer above, and we've got more details below about all of the confirmed features heading to Career Mode in FIFA 22 this year.
FIFA 22 Career Mode Confirmed Features
The wait is over, and we've finally got all of the new information about features in Career Mode thanks to a Deep Dive for FIFA 22 via Pitch Notes.
Create-a-Club
Create a Club (or Create Your Club) is a key part of Career Mode, and it has several interesting customisation features to utilise.
Everything gets started with Club Identity, where you can pick your club's name and the nickname that'll be used by commentary.
After that comes league choice, including which team you'll replace, and that team gets shifted to the Rest of World teams.
Kit, Crest, and Stadium Customization will be a crucial piece of carving out your own unique club.
You can see a quick preview above of kit and crest customization in FIFA 22 Career Mode.
On top of that, you can customize the very stadium where your club plays!
Create your own Stadium (Stadium Customization)
As great as it is to have your own team name and colors, nothing quite hits the same as having a unique home stadium to compete in.
FIFA 22 Career Mode has introduced Stadium Customization for your created club, and you have several different details to pick out.
Stadium Customization offers the chance to pick from any of the base model generic stadiums and then change base color, seat color, or even the pitch pattern and net shape.
You can see a preview of Stadium Customization above, and the atmosphere around the club will also be something you can pick out.
Whether it's goal songs, crowd chants, or walkout anthems, each can be selected to craft your club's own style.
Stadium Customization will also be an option for any existing clubs without an assigned licensed stadium in FIFA 22.
Player Career makes a comeback with new features
We'll see Player Career return once again in FIFA 22, but there are a handful of changes to further improve the experience.
Coming On As A Sub is a new way to come into the match from the bench, which they're aiming to use in delivering the experience of a young prospect climbing the ranks into a starting lineup.
Once the Manager decides to sub you in, you can either play the remainder of the match from the moment you're put in or sim past it.
Should you choose to play, your new Match Objectives will be revealed and you'll hop right into the action.
Manager Rating
Manager Rating will be a new facet that represents the manager's belief in your player as a part of the squad, and as such, you'll start at the bottom of the totem pole as a bench player with reduced minutes.
Once you complete objectives, your Pro will get increased playing time with the eventual goal being a place in the 11-player starting lineup.
Of course, that potential reward comes with risk, as you can get dropped if you continue to fail at objectives.
If you can perform in Training it will improve your chances at getting back on the squad, but continued failure can cause you to be transfer listed.
Keep in mind the level of club you're a part of, as top clubs will be harder to find a starting slot in while lower-rated clubs will be more forgiving to mistakes.
Manager Rating will also carry over into your relationship with your nation's international manager and hopes of being called up to the international team.
Match Objectives
If you hope to progress and find success as a player, you'll need to knock out Match Objectives that are revealed as you step onto the pitch for each game.
Match Objectives are generated based on the following factors:
- Your playing position
- The quality of your team compared to the opposition
- The formation your team is using compared to the one of the opposition
These three facets come together to give you a unique set of challenge with each match that will fit the scenario and your player.
Player Growth with Created Players
While playing Career Mode with a real player will work as it has before, things are a bit different this time for created players.
There's a whole new system in place to earn XP that will level up your Pro and unlock Skill Points at each new level.
You can earn XP the following ways in Player Career:
- Match Rewards (You will earn XP at the end of each match you play)
- Training (Limited sessions per week, with additional XP from playing drills and based on your position)
- Enhanced Match Objectives
There will also be a new Player Career Skill Tree, which aims to ensure player growth is in your hands and that attribute increases are significant and noticeable on the pitch.
You can see a short preview above of Attributes and the new Archetypes that will come into play as well.
Perks will also come into play, allowing you to unlock more as you level up and equip just three as you enter each match.
Once in a match, you'll have to watch for the Perk activation icon in order to get the effects rolling, which you can see above.
Dressing room atmosphere will also come into play, with unique cinematic sequences after each match that are influenced by your team and player's performances.
The cinematic sequences for Transfer Negotiation have also been updated, which includes the ability to start or stop scouting a player from the Transfer Hub.
Expanded Stories
In order to help emphasize the importance of specific achievements and career milestones, FIFA 22 will also be added news items based on stats and accomplishments.
The following events will trigger these:
- When you reach 50/100/150/200/250 matches played, or won, as a manager or player.
- When you win the Manager of the Month award. (Manager Career)
- When a youth player from your squad has a standout debut season. (Manager Career)
- When you as a player have a standout debut season. (Player Career)
- When you as a player or a player from your squad wins the Golden Boot award.
- When your player becomes the clean sheets or assists leader in the league. (Player Career)
- When you or one of your player’s goal projection is to break a competition’s goal record and when you or they finally succeed in doing so.
If you're on next-gen with PS5, Xbox Series X|S, or Stadia, these moments will also receive pre-match intro sequences with unique commentary.
New cinematics has been added for team warm-up sequences, locker room moments, teams inspecting the pitch, and even last-minute groundskeeper prep.
You'll also run the risk of the crowd leaving early if you're underperforming in an important match, adding another big layer of pressure.
One other layer of this will be commentary, which is seeing multiple upgrades with Alex Scott providing minute-by-minute updates for matches that are played simultaneously.
Finally, they're also adding Dynamic Tifos, meaning that any player (even if they didn't have existing player art) can be used in player tifos displayed by fans ahead of important matches.