The Pitch Notes
EA SPORTS FC™ 24 | Pitch Notes - Clubs Deep Dive
Hi everyone! I’m Timothy Abel, Producer of Clubs, and with me, I have my fellow Producer Brendan Douglas. It's a year of new beginnings with EA SPORTS FC™ 24, and to that end, Clubs is getting its biggest overhaul in recent memory – starting with the name. Formerly known as Pro Clubs, this has always been Clubs to our community, and so as we begin this new era it felt right to demonstrate our commitment to the community by aligning the name with how our players love and refer to it. On behalf of everyone on the Clubs team, we’re really excited about the strides made this year and we couldn't be more thrilled to share with you the changes coming to EA SPORTS FC™ 24.
Cross-play
Cross-play is coming to Clubs and VOLTA FOOTBALL™ in EA SPORTS FC™ 24.
Similar to other game modes, cross-play in Clubs will be generation-specific, meaning that PlayStation 4 and Xbox One players can hit the pitch together, while players across PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC can do so as well.
From creation, no club will be locked to the platform of the creator, meaning public clubs can immediately be discovered and joined by players from any platform of the same generation.
If for any reason you’re looking to play a match exclusively with players from your platform, you only need to set your local cross-play setting to ‘Disabled’ and be the first player to enter your Clubs match lobby. The cross-play setting of your lobby will remain until all players have exited.
Cross-play will be enabled in all Clubs match types including League, Playoff, Friendly, and Drop-In.
For more details on how cross-play will function in Clubs, please see the latest instalment of our cross-play article.
Clubs League
There’s nothing more rewarding than achieving something you’ve strived for as a collective – as teammates, as supporters, as a group of friends, as a club. It’s the reason we all love football, and it’s the reason we play Clubs. That’s why in EA SPORTS FC™ 24 you’ll always be on the path to glory with our new Clubs League format.
Each Clubs League season will take place over roughly 6 weeks, and will be split into 2 phases that dial up the stakes:
- League Phase
- Playoff Phase
League Phase
The League Phase is where we begin each new season. Accumulate points by winning matches, and earn the right to fight for promotion from Division 5 to higher and higher divisions, all the way up to the top of the Clubs football pyramid: the Elite Division. The higher you climb, the better the rewards you’ll have the opportunity to fight for come Playoff time.
League Matches
Starting in Division 5, clubs will no longer have a limited number of matches to obtain the points required to fight for promotion. In EA SPORTS FC™ 24, every point earned takes your club one step closer to success. That means any losses won’t damage your club's existing points total, and more importantly, no relegation – though that doesn’t mean that we’re letting you off easy.
Each new division will bring tougher opponents, and a higher required points target to reach Promotion Matches.
Promotion Matches
When a club has earned the required amount of points within their division, they will proceed to the Promotion Matches.
These are a do-or-die series of matches that will decide your promotion fate as you move through the Clubs League divisions. Draws won’t help you here, your club will be challenged to win a specified amount from a fixed number of total matches (win 1 of 3 matches, for example). Hit the required wins threshold and you’ll celebrate promotion, fall short, and your club will remain in its current division with a reduced points total, placing you just a few steps away from another attempt.
As you rise through the divisions, the promotion competition will intensify, providing a suitable challenge to clubs of all skill levels, and ensuring a place in the Elite Division is reserved for the best of the best.
After the League Phase, all clubs are locked to their respective divisions and their focus will turn to the all-new Clubs Playoffs.
League Rewards
Each time your club gains promotion, you will earn club rewards in the form of fans to grow your club’s Reputation, or Club Customization items to mark your rise through the divisions.
With each new season, a new set of themed Club Customization items will be on the line for your club to earn. Each set comprises a Kit, Tifo, and Stadium Bundle. Reach the lofty heights of the Elite Division to unlock the complete set.
Playoff Phase
The Clubs Playoffs are the crowning glory, the climactic event of every Clubs League season. Taking place over the final week of every Clubs season, the Playoffs are the time to unite the squad and battle it out for bragging rights and big rewards against the best clubs in your division.
At the beginning of the Playoffs, all clubs will be locked into pools based on their division and challenged with completing a set number of matches to rank as high as possible on their respective divisions' Playoff Table.
Playoff matches are high stakes. Draws aren’t an option, as every match will proceed to extra time, followed by penalties to determine a winner. Goal difference could be pivotal, so competing until the end will give your club a fighting chance against the competition.
After your club has completed all of their Playoff matches for the season, you can continue to play League matches during the Playoff Phase period to earn increases to your Club Reputation and Skill Rating. However, you will no longer be able to gain points toward promotion.
Playoff Rewards & Season End
After each Clubs League season, both you and your club will earn rewards based on your Playoff performance. With the eyes of the world on your club, the Clubs Playoffs provide the best chance to grow your club's Reputation – but the real prize comes in the form of the Clubs League trophy.
Each season will have its own unique trophy in gold, silver, and bronze, emblazoned with the crest of your league division to recognize your club’s Playoff performance that will be put on display in your all-new Trophy Room (as well as in your stadium).
In recognition of their contribution to the club, any player that contributes to a minimum of one Playoff Match for their club and remains on the roster at season’s end will earn VOLTA COINS to spend on the latest gear in the VOLTA SHOP and Season Points to improve their Clubs and VOLTA FOOTBALL shared seasonal progression path. The higher the division, and the better your club ranking, the larger amount you will receive. All Playoff Rewards will be delivered to you and your club when you enter Clubs for the first time after a brief reward calculation period.
A new Season will begin the moment the previous Season ends. At that time, clubs will be returned to their starting division and the journey to the top begins again.
Fans and Reputation
Club Reputation
For the first time, every club match will contribute to a shared progression system to allow clubs to grow together. By playing matches, clubs will gain fans which will contribute to their overall club reputation and reach higher reputation levels, going from Hometown Heroes to World Renowned.
At each reputation level clubs will unlock:
- Higher OVR AI clubmates
- Higher tier stadiums
- Stadium Vanity
Club Customization
Your club's stadium will reflect the journey your club has gone on with an overhauled stadium customization experience. As clubs grow in reputation, they will unlock new stadiums and ways to customise them. Along with new seasonal content unlocked via promotion in the Clubs League, your club will have the tools it needs to show off its unique identity.
All of the following options can be added to the 3 new customizable stadiums in Clubs:
Stadium Bundles
The look and feel of your club's stadium can be drastically changed with the press of a button. Bundles include Banners, Stadium Colours, Stadium Lighting and Inflatables to outfit your stadium and show off your club identity.
Pitch Trophies
The Trophies you earn aren't just for the trophy room! To show off your club’s success in the Playoffs, all trophies earned can be added to your stadium and appear along the pitch and in match intro sequences.
Animated Tifos
Along with our classic tifos, new animated tifos are being introduced to really make your stadium stand out.
PlayStyles
PlayStyles optimised by Opta will add a new dimension to Virtual Pro specialisation in EA SPORTS FC™ 24.
Each PlayStyle affects gameplay in a big way, granting your Virtual Pro a set of unique abilities to make them stand out on the pitch. PlayStyles+ enhances those signature abilities to a world-class level, reflecting the iconic talents of football's elite players – think Erling Haaland’s Acrobatic ability or Sam Kerr’s Power Header.
You will have plenty of room to both experiment and hone your specialty with up to 6 PlayStyles slots and 2 PlayStyles+ slots to be unlocked through the course of your Virtual Pro Player Growth progression. From the first time you enter Clubs in EA SPORTS FC™ 24, you will have one PlayStyles slot and the full range of PlayStyles unlocked to begin experimenting with. From there, you can unlock up to a maximum of 6 PlayStyles slots by earning Player Growth XP and increasing your Virtual Pro level. Once you’ve got some matches under your belt and your style of play has begun to take shape, you will start to unlock PlayStyles+ and up to the maximum 2 PlayStyles+ slots, allowing you to further enhance the abilities that define the way you play.
While you are free to assign any unlocked PlayStyles+ to your Virtual Pro, each positional group (FWD, MID, DEF, GK), will have a maximum amount of PlayStyles they can assign from each PlayStyles group. We believe this provides players with enough room for experimentation while encouraging players to create builds using all position groups.
For more details on PlayStyles and how they work, please see the latest instalment of our Gameplay Pitch Notes.
Clubs on Nintendo Switch™
EA SPORTS FC™ 24 will introduce Clubs to Nintendo Switch players for the very first time. If you’re a Nintendo Switch player, you will now have access to the full Clubs experience where you can create and personalise your Virtual Pro, create a club with friends, and take on the competition throughout the year.
Additional Changes
EA SPORTS FC™ 24 will introduce Clubs to Nintendo Switch players for the very first time. If you’re a Nintendo Switch player, you will now have access to the full Clubs experience where you can create and personalise your Virtual Pro, create a club with friends, and take on the competition throughout the year.
Leaderboards & Skill Rating
To coincide with the addition of cross-play and the new Clubs League, we have updated our Club Leaderboards with the introduction of a club-based Skill Rating.
What is Skill Rating?
Your clubs’ Skill Rating is a measure of your club's skill level compared to other clubs based on past performance.
What is Skill Rating used for?
Skill Rating is simply a tool used to evaluate clubs and compare them against one another. It is not used to influence matchmaking or any other processes. Matchmaking in both League and Playoff matches primarily considers looking for an opponent in the same division as your club.
How is it calculated?
League and Playoff Matches that you play in Clubs in EA SPORTS FC™ 24 will determine changes to your Skill Rating. Win a match, and your Skill Rating will probably go up; lose, and it will probably go down.
The amount that it changes will depend on a few key factors.
First, the current Skill Rating of both you and your opponent; your Skill Rating will increase more for defeating a club with a higher Skill Rating than it would for defeating a club of a similar or lower Skill Rating to yours. Similarly, your Skill Rating will decrease more for losing to a club with a lower Skill Rating than it would for losing to a club of a similar or higher Skill Rating to your own.
Second, the goal difference between you and your opponent; the greater the goal difference, the greater the impact on your Skill Rating increases and decreases.
Third, the match type. Skill Rating changes will be greater from Playoff matches than League matches. So there is more on the line in each Playoff Match than just your Playoff ranking.
Drop-In Updates
The Drop-In lobby is getting an upgrade in EA SPORTS FC™ 24. After you and your new teammates have put in a strong performance on the pitch, we want to make it easier for you to stay together, solidify new bonds, and ensure each Drop-In match is a fun experience.
After grouping up with a new team of players for a Clubs Drop-In match, by default, you will now be kept together from match to match. Simply select ‘Next Match’ from the post-match menu – or let the countdown timer expire to return to the lobby together with your new teammates and prepare to go again. If you wish to leave your new teammates and return to your original lobby, simply select Quit from the post-match menu.
Player Customization
EA SPORTS FC™ 24 will feature more dual-mode player customization items than ever before. That means more tattoos, more hairstyles and facial hair, more facial accessories, and more boots for you and your squad to show off in both Clubs and VOLTA FOOTBALL.
For VOLTA FOOTBALL players, the VOLTA SHOP has been restocked with a host of new Essentials items to have your Virtual Pro looking their best, more amazing outfits and bundles will be available throughout the year.
Broadcast & Gameplay Improvements [Available on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC only]
Dynamic Match Intros
Each Clubs match in EA SPORTS FC™ 24 will feature new Dynamic Match Intros. These sequences will amp up the tension before a pivotal Promotion Match, elevate the excitement of your club’s first Playoff appearance, and even celebrate individual successes such as becoming your club’s all-time leading goalscorer.
Run Styles and Penalty Styles
Powered by HyperMotionV Full Team Volumetric Motion and the all-new AI Mimic technology, we have introduced a number of new Run Styles and Penalty Styles to Clubs, allowing you and your Virtual Pro to replicate the flair of some of the world’s best.
New Penalty Kick Avatar runs that can be applied to your Virtual Pro:
- Turtle, The Norse, King, Goalscorer, Freight Train, The Professor, Ranger, The Dutch, and Short and Sweet
- New Penalty Kick animations for Erling Haaland and many more.
Thanks for taking a deeper dive into what you can expect from Clubs in EA SPORTS FC™ 24. With cross-play bringing together our community, the new Clubs League system amping up the excitement, Club Reputation helping build your club identity and PlayStyles refining yours, it’s shaping up to be a big year. We’re excited, and we hope you are too.
Can’t wait to see you all on the pitch!
Players who pre-order EA SPORTS FC™ 24 Standard Edition or Ultimate Edition on PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One or PC receive one unlocked PlayStyles slot for Clubs. Conditions & restrictions apply. See https://www.ea.com/games/ea-sports-fc/fc-24/game-offer-and-disclaimers for details.
EA SPORTS FC™ 24 is available on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC and Nintendo Switch
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