Every year, EA Sports introduces a new instalment to their FIFA football franchise video game. The future of the FIFA brand is in doubt, but the controversy around rating cards is here to stay.
For the past few years, Lionel Messi has been the highest-rated player in the game, frequently being rated 93-94. The last time Cristiano Ronaldo was the highest rated player was in FIFA 19 when he and Messi were both rated 94.
It’s almost become a tradition for team ratings to leak before EA officially announces them, and what follows this is the outrage from the supporters who feel like their favourite players should be rated higher.
The teams that have had their ratings FIFA 23 leak so far include big names like Manchester United, Liverpool, Chelsea, and Arsenal.
Manchester United
For Manchester United, the ratings max out at 90 for 37-year-old Cristiano Ronaldo, followed by 89 for new signing Casemiro and 87 for goalkeeper De Gea. This is Cristiano’s lowest rating in over a decade.
De Gea’s rating has increased by 3 from 84 last year, which confused some due to his performances, but was mostly accepted as generous by all United fans.
Bruno Fernandes’ rating has dropped by 2 points, from an 88 to an 86, alongside Sancho and Varane, who was also downgraded to 84.
This is not very surprising as Bruno Fernandes did not have the best of seasons last year, and Varane and Sancho had struggles with injuries and adjusting to the Premier League.
What triggered most fans was the level of downgrade fan-favourite Anthony Martial got. Accepting the fact that he had not had the best of seasons, especially with the loan to Sevilla, they believe a non-rare card with an 80 is insulting.
Other ratings include an 81 for Harry Maguire, Rashford, and new signing Lisandro Martinez. Diogo Dalot has a rating of just 78, but being one of United’s most consistent performers, he is sure to increase.
Liverpool
The two highest-rated players for Liverpool are Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk, each receiving a rating of 90, an overall improvement of one from last year’s rating of 89.
The majority of the squad’s other members either stayed the same or marginally improved.
Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andrew Robertson both maintain their current 87 ratings, while Alisson maintains his 89 ratings.
Fabinho’s overall rating increased from 86 to 87. Luis Diaz, a replacement for Sadio Mane, gets the highest increase of 4 points, going from 80 to 84.
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain gets the biggest downgrade of 2 points, going from 79 to 77.
Other notable high-rated players are Thiago (86), Jota (85), Matip (84), and Firmino (83).
Liverpool had a very strong season last year, despite not winning the Premier League or Champions League, which explains the overall improvements.
Chelsea
Coming to Chelsea, N’Golo Kante appears to be the Blues’ highest-rated player once more, despite a one-point reduction in overall rating to 89.
Since 2017, Kante has had the highest base player rating for Chelsea on FIFA.
Trevoh Chalobah (76), Reece James (84), and Edouard Mendy (86), all had the biggest upgrades, a three-point increase in their base ratings, whereas Mason Mount (84), Jorginho (85), and Christian Pulisic (82) did not have any increase.
Surprisingly, 2022 Brighton and Hove Albion Player of the Year Marc Cucurella got no increase in ratings and stayed the same at 81, despite switching to Chelsea this season.
Raheem Sterling (86) is among a few surprise downgrades on the list, alongside Hakim Ziyech (83), who helped Chelsea lift the European Super Cup and reach multiple cup finals.
The general decreasing trend for Chelsea makes one wonder, as Chelsea did not have a bad season by any means.
Arsenal
Arsenal have had particularly controversial ratings.
When compared to their other “Big 6” compatriots, they have the lowest ratings.
The highest ratings are given to Thomas Partey and Martin Odegaard at 84.
New star signing, Gabriel Jesus, gets an 83 rating, the same as last season.
Some fan favourite academy graduates got notable upgrades, like Bukayo Saka at 82 and Emile Smith Rowe at 80.
Aaron Ramsdale got one of the highest upgrades, which saw him climb up from 74 to 82.
Other starters are Gabriel Maghaeles (81), Ben White (79), Gabriel Martinelli (78), and another new signing Zinchenko (79).
Fans are particularly furious at how low the general ratings are for the whole team, and the anger may well be justified, as Arsenal currently sit atop the Premier League with 4 wins out of 4.
Arsenal fans should not lose out hope though. Considering Arsenal have the youngest team in the league, all these ratings are sure to increase not just throughout the season but also as the years go on.
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