FIFA 23 guide with all you need for Ultimate Team, Career Mode and beyond

FIFA 23
(Image credit: EA)

They think it's all over, and for FIFA 23, it is – almost. Later this month the longstanding football series closes its doors for good, ushering in the era of EA Sports FC 24. It's going out on a high, though. The summer months have brought us FIFA 24 Futties, and Pre-Season, and those promos have been added to our comprehensive catalogue below. If you're still playing then there's plenty of life left in GR's one-stop FIFA 23 guide.

Review

FIFA 23 review

FIFA 23

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The most obvious question to kick things off with. Is EA's final FIFA game worth buying in the first place? Our FIFA 23 review covers all this year's major developments, including a gamechanger in career mode, as Steven Gerrard moves to Germany to take over as Frieburg boss. Don't throw things, Aston Villa fans – it's only a game.

Gameplay

FIFA 23 formations

FIFA 23

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As is standard there are numerous strategic options on offer this year, but the community is honing in on a couple of specific ones. We've therefore taken a new approach with our traditional FIFA 23 formations guide, honing in on the four set-ups most likely to serve you best, both online and off.

FIFA 23 meta

FIFA 23

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Our FIFA 23 meta guide focuses strongly on Ultimate Team – it is, after all, the focal point of the game for many, and will help you build an OP squad on a budget. But whatever mode you play, there's help contained within – with a look at a couple of key formations and a killer set of tactical instructions too.

FIFA 23 skill moves

FIFA 23

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Flicks and tricks are an important element in trying to garner online success, and as a result cards with five-star skill moves are especially popular in Ultimate Team. But even low-rated players can pull off a few dodges and feints. Learn them all from the ground up using our FIFA 23 skill moves guide. 

FIFA 23 celebrations

FIFA 23

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This year sees EA add personal celebrations for Diogo Jota, Christian Pulisic and cover star Sam Kerr – but it's the Griddy that everyone is raving about. The dance popularised by NFL players and Youtubers is now available after you score, and you can find out how to do it in our FIFA 23 celebrations guide.

FIFA 23 lengthy players

FIFA 23

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Hypermotion 2 has scored lots of social media chatter with the addition of lengthy players. But what on earth are they? Basically, every individual in the game now uses one of three acceleration styles, and 'lengthy' is the one influencers have proclaimed as meta. Hit our FIFA 23 lengthy players guide for a more detailed explanation.

FIFA 23 fastest players

FIFA 23

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More interested in sheer pace than the nuances of acceleration styles? We have a guide for that too. Our FIFA 23 fastest players guide will steer you through the speediest stars in the game, with extra attention given to Ultimate Team – where if you can't afford the most rapid gold cards, there are silver and bronze to choose from instead. 

FIFA 23 stadiums

FIFA 23

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Nottingham Forest suffered a baptism of fire on their return to the Premier League, but there was better news on the digital turf. They're one of six new additions to the FIFA 23 stadiums list. Manchester City also become the first club to have a dedicated women's stadium in the game. 

FIFA 23 best women's teams

FIFA 23

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Domestic women's teams are a new addition this year, with the English WSL and French Division 1 Arkema taking a very welcome bow. But which of these are the most fun to play as? And where can you find England's Euro 2022 victors at club level? Open up our FIFA 23 best women's teams list to find out. 

Ratings

FIFA 23 best teams

FIFA 23

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Shock, horror: Manchester City are the highest-rated side in this year's footy sim. December table toppers Arsenal, meanwhile, don't even make it into its top ten, beaten in the ratings by Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United. You can read, and fume, over profiles of all the elite squads with our FIFA 23 best teams guide.

FIFA 23 best players

FIFA 23

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For the first time in a decade, neither Lionel Messi not Cristiano Ronaldo top the best players list in a FIFA game. Despite scoring 88,000 goals in the Bundesliga before his move to Barcelona, Robert Lewandowski misses out on top spot too. Instead, number one in our FIFA 23 ratings guide is… drumroll please… Karim Benzema. Cue applause. 

Ultimate Team

FIFA 23 coins

FIFA 23

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You can't progress in Ultimate Team without dropping currency on players. But there's no reason to waste real cash on FIFA Points. Instead, bookmark GR's FIFA 23 coins guide. It'll help you make moolah using Bronze Pack Method and discard TOTW items, without costing a single penny. 

FIFA 23 Icons

FIFA 23

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Some bad news to report on the legends front. Eight old favourites are axed from this year's game, including Argentine deity Diego Maradona and Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola. In their place we do get new faces, and you can see them all profiled – along with the full legends list – in our FIFA 23 Icons guide. 

FIFA 23 TOTY

FIFA 23

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After Icons, Team Of The Season (TOTS) are the game's most-wanted cards – more on those shortly. Team Of The Year comes next on the list, celebrating the players who remained elite throughout 2022. Kylian Mbappe and Lionel Messi front the first XI, which you can see in our FIFA 23 TOTY guide.

FIFA 23 TOTS Swaps

FIFA 23

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It's here! The campaign everyone spends months waiting for has launched, with the Community and Eredivisie TOTS squads up first. This year's Team Of The Season promo also features a system where you can grind for cards featuring Jesus Navas and Wayne Rooney. Get cracking using GR's FIFA 23 TOTS Swaps tracker.

FIFA 23 Base Icons

FIFA 23

(Image credit: EA)

'Baby' Icons have repeatedly gone under the community microscope this year. That's because EA keeps releasing SBCs where you can earn one – and it's highly likely you'll unearth a card to build an entire team around. This particular guide lists the best rewards, and a rundown of all FIFA 23 Base Icons

FIFA 23 Heroes

FIFA 23 Heroes

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Heroes are famous past players who don't quite deserve Icon billing, and are especially renowned for their performances in (at least) one specific league. Two of those lost Icons return in this form: Hidetoshi Nakata and Jay-Jay Okocha. You can see a list of the whole bunch – including the superhuman Yaya Toure! – in our FIFA 23 Heroes guide. 

FIFA 23 Trophy Titans

FIFA 23

(Image credit: EA)

Just in case regular Icons and Heroes weren't OP enough in FUT, EA upgraded a bunch of them in April – and gave us a cool Dennis Bergkamp card that you could grind for instead of having to fork out hard-earned coins, too. All is explained in your FIFA 23 Trophy Titans guide. 

FIFA 23 FUT Birthday

FIFA 23

(Image credit: EA)

This is the 14th season of Ultimate Team – and that meant that return of FIFA 23 FUT Birthday in March. As you'll see from hitting that link, it brought two teams' worth of new players, fresh Icon cards, and a whole new swaps campaign with fresh treats to be traded for.

FIFA 23 Futties

FIFA 23

(Image credit: EA)

One of the most popular promos in the series' annual cycle underwent a controversial change this year, with fan-voted Futties cards dropped into packs rather than solely available as SBCs. It meant Cristiano Ronaldo immediately went extinct. Who else was included? Find out in our FIFA 23 Futties guide.

FIFA 23 Future Stars

FIFA 23

(Image credit: EA)

EA managed to go one better than normal with this year's wonderkid-focussed promo. As well as adding youngsters such as Julian Alvarez and Marc Guehi to packs, you could earn tokens to trade in for Icons such as Gianfranco Zola and George Best. See them in all in GR's FIFA 23 Future Stars token tracker

FIFA 23 OTW

FIFA 23

(Image credit: EA)

Ones To Watch cards have become a feature of every FIFA launch, and these dynamic items return again to celebrate big summer transfers like Erling Haaland's move to Manchester City. Find out how the upgrade system works, and see the complete cards list, in our FIFA 23 OTW guide. 

FIFA 23 Pre-Season

FIFA 23

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The final big promo of this cycle saw FIFA 23 serve up treats for its successor. Complete in-game tasks and you can earn gold packs and other goodies for deployment in FC 24. All is explained in our FIFA 23 Pre-Season guide.

FIFA 23 World Cup Swaps

FIFA 23

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A unique real-life season means a one-off FIFA campaign. The first ever winter World Cup saw domestic fixtures put on hold while the best international sides duked it out in Qatar. That led to EA dropping new tokens which could be converted into FUT rewards. All is explained in our FIFA 23 World Cup Swaps guide.

FIFA 23 World Cup TOTT

FIFA 23

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Shortly before Argentina overcame France in an incredible World Cup final, EA unveiled its Team Of The Tournament. Jude Bellingham surprisingly missed out, but Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe and Yassine Bounou all claimed deserved spots. See the whole set of cards in our FIFA 23 World Cup TOTT guide.

FIFA 23 RTTK

FIFA 23

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RTTK stands for Road To The Knockouts, and sees Ultimate Team players rewarded for early season results in the Champions League, Europa League, and Europa Conference League. Those to receive cards include Lionel Messi and Phil Foden. Keep up with their progress using GR's FIFA 23 RTTK tracker

FIFA 23 RTTF

FIFA 23

(Image credit: EA)

In one of the year's least surprising promos, EA followed up RTTK with Road To The Finals. It works similarly, but this time around upgrades are dependent on results in the knockout stages of European competition. See all the cards and their current ratings in GR's FIFA 23 RTTF upgrades tracker

FIFA 23 Silver Stars

FIFA 23

(Image credit: EA)

One of the best ways to enjoy Ultimate Team is through FIFA 23 Silver Stars. Every Wednesday, a new 74-rated special card lands in FUT. You have exactly a week to earn it – but can only do so using a squad of silver players. Hit that link for all the items released so far.

FIFA 23 Rulebreakers

FIFA 23

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Many FUT promos are based on real-life performances – but not this one. FIFA 23 Rulebreakers transforms some of the game's best players, causing them to perform differently from their actual selves. Leonardi Bonucci gets a speed boost, while Cristiano Ronaldo's first special item sees him roll back the years. 

FIFA 23 Out Of Position

FIFA 23

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Halloween is always an intriguing time in FIFA, and this year it delivered a whole new type of special card. FIFA 23 Out Of Position items see players switched from their default roles, with up to three alternate ones included too. Ansu Fati moves to ST, while Joao Cancelo drops into midfield. 

FIFA 23 Winter Wildcards

FIFA 23

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Alas, there was no FIFA 23 Futmas. Or FIFA 23 Freeze. The final ever FIFA Christmas promo instead saw us racking up tokens to exchange for Kieran Trippier or Sandro Tonali. It sounds a little underwhelming, but the list of FIFA 23 Winter Wildcards was just strong enough to keep us hooked into the new year.

FIFA 23 Shapeshifters

FIFA 23

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Even fancied playing Petr Cech up front, or Wilfried Zaha at right-back? June 2023 threw up these new opportunities via the FIFA 23 Shapeshifters promo. We got three mixed-up teams in total, as well as new roles for a selection of Icons. 

FIFA 23 Centurions

FIFA 23

(Image credit: EA)

Another brand-new card type celebrates players who've racked up 100 caps, 100 goals or 100 clean sheets across their career. It means some welcome boosted cards for fan-favourite veterans such as Liverpool's James Milner and Makoto Hasebe of Frankfurt. See them all in our FIFA 23 Centurions guide.

FIFA 23 World Cup Phenoms

FIFA 23

(Image credit: EA)

Having a mid-season international tournament triggered a selection of fresh card types. This one dropped during the quarter-finals in Qatar, and sees past Future Stars upgraded to reflect their coming of age. Jude Bellingham and Bukayo Saka are two of the highlights in your FIFA 23 World Cup Phenoms guide.

FIFA 23 cheapest rated

FIFA 23

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Affordable cards with ratings of 84, 85, 86, 87 and 88 are the key to completing Squad Building Challenges for higher-ranked special cards. As a result, we've drummed up an entirely new guide for this season. Click the link for a rundown of all the FIFA 23 cheapest rated players, and what they cost.

FIFA 23 chemistry styles

FIFA 23

(Image credit: EA)

FIFA's new acceleration system can be manipulated even further with the use of these old favourites, such as Hunter and Hawk cards. FIFA 23 chemistry styles are used to increase individual player attributes to your liking, and you can get a handle on how this customisation element works by the clicking the link.

FIFA 23 kits

FIFA 23

(Image credit: EA)

Rightly or wrongly, showboating is a huge factor in Ultimate Team, and you definitely need some tidy treads if you're going to look cool pulling off the Griddy. From traditional faves such as Brazil and New Zealand to niche newcomers like Wrexham and Bohemians, we have all your fashion needs covered in our guide to the best FIFA 23 kits

FIFA 23 worst players

FIFA 23

(Image credit: EA)

Want the biggest challenge possible in Ultimate Team? Build an all-bronze team using our FIFA 23 worst players guide, then take it into Divison Rivals. Every player is rated 48 or under, with India, China and Ireland all heavily represented. Along with the game's best-named player: Emanuel Lalchhanchhuaha.

Career mode

FIFA 23 career mode

FIFA 23

(Image credit: EA)

Our traditional FIFA 23 career mode guide is once again a whopper, taking you through its transfer system, scouting set-up, and the best clubs to manage. But we've expanded it by delving into its best new feature: being able to play as authentic managers, rather than having to create your own (rubbish) avatar. 

FIFA 23 best young players

FIFA 23

(Image credit: EA)

Another whopper here, featuring the 50 greatest wonderkids you can buy in career mode. Inevitably Donnarumma, Mbappe and Haaland appear high up the list, but there are plenty of cut-priced gems to be found too. Get your scouts searching for them with GR's FIFA 23 best young players guide. 

FIFA 23 signings

FIFA 23

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Got money to spend in career mode and want to consider experience as well as youth? Then switch your attentions to our FIFA 23 signings guide. It covers players with the most potential, best bargains and free agents, and there are a couple of bonus Ultimate Team transfer tips thrown in for good measure.

Teams

FIFA 23 AFC Richmond

FIFA 23

(Image credit: EA)

Yes, you are reading those words correctly – Ted Lasso is in this year's game! As are Coach Beard, Jamie Tartt and Dani Rojas. The team from Apple+ TV's huge sports comedy are available in multiple modes, and you can even have Jason Sudeikis roaming the touchline in FUT. Find out how in our FIFA 23 AFC Richmond guide. 

FIFA 23 Wrexham

FIFA 23

(Image credit: EA)

Ted Lasso isn't the only TV show repped in this year's game. The lads from Disney Plus documentary Welcome To Wrexham are also included as a 'Rest Of World' option – sadly without cameos from owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney. To view their kits and squad, hit GR's FIFA 23 Wrexham guide. 

Miscellanous

FIFA 23 cover

FIFA 23

(Image credit: EA)

This year two players share cover honors, and a little history is made in the process. Kylian Mbappe returns as FIFA 23 cover athlete, marking his third consecutive year on the box. Joining Mbappe on the Ultimate Team edition box is Chelsea and Australia forward Sam Kerr. She's the first ever woman to appear as a global cover star, and gets the box to herself in Australia and New Zealand.

FIFA 23 Russian teams

This area of the game is again affected by ongoing Russian-Ukrainian relations. In March, CSKA Moscow, Lokomotiv Moscow and Spartak Moscow were all removed from FIFA 22. The Russian national side also disappeared, as did kits and players from Russian clubs in Ultimate Team. (However, legends such as Lev Yashin and Aleksandr Mostovoi are still available in packs.)

At this point, the plan is for FIFA 23 to have no Russian clubs or national side. Spartak Moscow’s Otkritie Arena, another piece of content axed during that March cull, is also being left out once again.

From FIFA 23 to EA Sports FC

FIFA 23

(Image credit: EA)

From 2023, EA’s football games will continue under the guise of EA Sports FC. I’ve written about what this could mean elsewhere on GamesRadar. More creativity is likely to be a major plus point – perhaps even a return to the days of FIFA 11’s Creation Centre. There’s even a chance that we’re able to toggle between virtual matches and real-life ones. 

Ben Wilson

I'm GamesRadar's sports editor, and obsessed with NFL, WWE, MLB, AEW, and occasionally things that don't have a three-letter acronym – such as Chvrches, Bill Bryson, and Streets Of Rage 4. (All the Streets Of Rage games, actually.) Even after three decades I still have a soft spot for Euro Boss on the Amstrad CPC 464+.