FIFA World Cup 2010 guide

Guide to the game’s modes

How to win the World Cup

There’s no great mystery to winning the game’s premier mode. It’s simply a case of playing really well, really consistently. So if your rubbish at FIFA, you’re plumb out of luck. Saying that, there are definitely things you can do to improve your chances.

Obviously, going one of the big boys helps. Pick one of the top ranked, five star teams in the game (Spain, Argentina, England etc.) and you’ll give yourself a great start. From here, it’s then all about playing to that team’s strengths and rotating your squad.

Above: Want to win the World Cup? Then don't go Samoa

If your chosen team has a hefty target man who’s good in the air, you should try and play balls up to him as often as possible. Try to swing plenty of crosses into him to get his head on, too. Likewise, if you’ve got a couple of nippy wingers, you should try to spread the ball to the flanks to get them in the game as much as you can. It’s all about identifying your danger men, and then trying to bring them into play whenever you can.

Above: Follow our guide to win gaming's most prestigious pot

Rotating your squad is also important. Players tire after every game. Overuse certain ones and they’ll start to slow down earlier in matches and will be more vulnerable to injuries. If you find yourself cruising in a game after 60 minutes, take off a couple of your best players for a well deserved rest. And if you’ve already qualified from a group and find yourself with a dead rubber to play, put out a second string team.

Captain your Country

Like FIFA 10’s Be a Pro, you only control a single player. But here, the aim is to improve your stats by putting in good performances so you can captain your country. Regardless if you choose a created character or a real player, you’ll probably find you’ll start as a fringe player at the beginning of the mode. To get in the first team, you’ll have to build your reputation and stats by playing well in international B games.

Above: Making assists and scoring with a midfielder nets you mega points

It’s important you adjust your game to whatever position you’re playing in. That means if you’re a centre half, don’t try and go on a 90 yard mazy run. Instead, you have to focus on winning tackles and helping your team keep a clean sheet. We suggest going a central midfielder. That way, you’ll see loads of the ball and you can put yourselves in situations where you can provide assists and slot home goals.

It’s also better to play short simple passes. For every forward pass you nail, your match rating will increase by a point. Try to avoid going for killer Hollywood passes and just focus on helping your side maintain possession, while trying to push forward at the same time.

Story of Qualifying

This is an awesome objective-based mode where you have to rewrite the results from some of the most talked about, controversial matches from the qualifying rounds. Most of these games place you in the boots of the losing team, and challenge you to mount a comeback, usually under a tight time limit. Since scoring goals quickly is paramount to most of the challenges, the best tactic is to switch to an attacking formation – like a 4-3-3.  And go ultra offensive by pressing right twice on the D-pad tactics.

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You can win additional points, used to unlock challenges for the 2006 World Cup, by completing secondary objectives – such as not conceding or winning by two goals or more. If you’re a points whore, just looking for an easy haul, we suggest turning the mode to Semi Pro, the easiest difficulty setting you can select in the Story of Qualifying.

Next up, we give you the low-down on the game's best teams...