For particularly strong and possibly weak players, Publisher EA is happy to adjust the ratings in FIFA with the so-called Winter Upgrade. Which players deserve it and which card will be extremely badass?
The Team of the Year in FIFA 22 is just around the corner … but what comes after the biggest FIFA event of the year? Looking at the FUT calendar , the very popular Future Stars promo could be up next .
However, it will soon be February and in February publisher EA has always got another event rolling in the past: Winter Refresh. What is it all about, will the promo also come to FIFA 22 and which players will get their (un)deserved update?
What does Winter Refresh mean for FIFA 22?
The winter transfer period is over and the first half of the – Season has also been played in the major European leagues. For EA, this means updating the squad. In addition to players who changed clubs during the winter break, the ratings of top performers and possibly of footballers who are in poor form are also updated .
Normally, most gold cards get a boost of 1 or 2 – sometimes even 3 with a special increase in performance. Silver objects, on the other hand, can make quite violent jumps. But let’s see which players can probably look forward to an upgrade.
FIFA 22 – Will these players get an upgrade?
These players have not only performed in your weekend league, but also consistently delivered top performances in real life . The selection of players who would have earned a juicy upgrade is definitely easier than with the downgrades. After all, you just have to take a look at the Team of the Week …
| player | association | OVR old → new | Reason |
| Mohamed Salah | FC Liverpool | 89 → 90 | Best player of the first half of the PL |
| Karim Benzema | Real Madrid | 89 → 90 | Hits felt in every game |
| Vinicius Jr. | Real Madrid | 80 → 83 | Great increase in performance and doubling of market value |
| Dusan Vlahovic | AC Fiorentina | 78 → 80 | Score goals like I did in E-Youth |
| João Cancelo | Manchester City | 86 → 87 | Currently the best LV in the world? |
| Alphonso Davies | FC Bayern | 82 → 84 | After a weak second half of 20/21, now a strong first half |
| Patrik Schick | Bayer Leverkusen | 79 → 81 | On a high since his goal at the European Championship |
| Nico Schlotterbeck | SC Freiburg | 72 → 78 (Gold) | Extremely important for the Freiburg defense |
| Gregor Kobel | Borussia Dortmund | 79 → 81 (Gold Rare) | Finally a good goalkeeper at BVB |
| Trevoh Chalobah | Chelsea FC | 73 → 75 | Huge talent with lots of playing time |
| Aaron Ramsdale | Arsenal | 74 → 77 | Has rightly ousted Bernd Leno in goal |
| Christopher Nkunku | RB Leipzig | 81 → 83 | The man with the 1,000 special cards |
| Florian Wirtz | Bayer Leverkusen | 78 → 80 | (Almost) nothing works without him |
| Jude Bellingham | Borussia Dortmund | 79 → 81 | Evergreen with horse lung |
| Sandro Tonali | AC Milan | 77 → 80 | Set at Milan now |
| Lucas Paquetá | Olympic Lyon | 81 → 83 | 7 goals & 3 assists in 19 games |
| Aurelien Tchouameni | AS Monaco | 79 → 82 | Huge talent |
| Téji Savanier | Montpellier | 80 → 82 | Already has dozens of special cards in FIFA 22 |
| Sebastian Haller | ajax Amsterdam | 80 → 84 | For him, the Champions League is the Farmers League |
These players have earned a downgrade in FIFA 22
Warning: These are just our estimates based on the – Season so far and player performance. We know EA loves its stars and would never downgrade them…
| player | association | OVR old → new | Reason |
| Lionel Messi | Paris Saint Germain | 93 → 92 | Weakest first half of his career… sorry Leo. |
| Neymar Jr. | Paris Saint Germain | 91 → 90 | Hurts and doesn’t really find his form |
| Jadon Sancho | Manchester United | 87 → 85 | Big hype about his move, nothing delivered so far |
| Marcel Sabitzer | FC Bayern Munich | 84 → 83 | Couldn’t assert himself in midfield |
| Memphis Depay | FC Barcelona | 85 → 84 | Good at first, then bottomless |
| Bernd Leno | FC Arsenal | 83 → 81 | Benched by Aaron Ramsdale |
| Saúl Ñíguez | Chelsea FC | 82 → 80 | Has he ever played? |
| Donyell Malen | Borussia Dortmund | 80 → 78 | Not yet used to the Bundesliga level |
FIFA 22 – The most important club changes in winter
With the Winter Refresh not only the ratings of the players are adjusted depending on their performance, but also the club. In the winter transfer period, there is a lot of change every year… and fortunately we already have an article on the most important winter transfers for FIFA 22 at the start!
We (I) are already looking forward to the social media reactions that we dared to put Lionel Messi in the downgrade table. Whether a downgrade would be justified after this first half of the – Season or not, you can argue on our Discord .
FIFA 22 – FUTs
What could be cooler than just relaxed gaming and doing some sofa sports on the side? In FIFA 22, the player is on the move fast, but without getting sore muscles. With the Ultimate Team Event cards, the collecting instinct is now also satisfied. However, the FUT Heroes keep creeping into my mind, so here are the best Ultimate Team Event cards that are definitely worth adding to your collection.
Heroes cards selected by EA for top qualities
Admittedly, the FUT heroes will cost quite a bit of coin, but it turns out that EA has once again brought some top-class players into the game when it comes to selection. As a collector and hunter, it’s an added attraction for FIFA gamers to now include their own favorite heroes in the portfolio and benefit from their individual skills. Both in the game and in team building, the FUTs will revolutionize the game once again.
EA SPORTS FC: FIFA GAME SERIES TO BE CONTINUED UNDER NEW NAME
Of course, the soccer simulation game series will not be discontinued completely. After FIFA 23, EA will relaunch the game under the name EA Sports FC and market it independently. Old FIFA hares should now become quite an ear, after all, the EA Sports Football Club used to be a part of the actual game for years. A lot of playing was rewarded, points could be collected and items, boosts or balls for the individual game modes could be unlocked.
In this context, there could also be a complete revolution of the classic game. There is a heated discussion in the FIFA community about whether the game, which is expected to be released in the fall of 2023, will be free-to-play. This option is said to be on the table for the game makers from EA, because: It seems that EA earns most of its money with the purchases of FIFA Points in the game mode Ultimate Team and not with the sale of the game itself.
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