FIFA 21 Career Mode trailer: New features, managers, transfers, more

David Purcell
FIFA 21 Career Mode with Frank Lampard

[jwplayer djxgE8oU]EA SPORTS have finally revealed Career Mode will be getting its biggest update in years, with the latest changes for FIFA 21 shown off in an all-new trailer. 

In recent years, the game’s community have felt like the offline mode has been something of an afterthought.

They have dabbled with different ways of bringing a solid story foundation to Career Mode in the past. It started with The Journey and even the integration of more player-manager interactions, but in the eyes of some fans it was never enough.

This time around, though, things look to be shaping up really well – with the developers promising the biggest update in years.

FIFA 21 Career Mode trailer revealed

EA confirmed on August 12 that a new trailer would soon be released for the mode, the following day.

This was the third main feature trailer unveiled for FIFA 21, after both gameplay and Ultimate Team showcases.

You can watch it below.

EA on Career Mode revamp

FIFA 21 Anfield stadium
Career Mode is going to take fans even closer to the fans in the stadium, in FIFA 21.

Speaking to Goal, Vice-President of EA Nick Wlodyka said: “The Career Mode is very important for this year. We’ve really made the biggest investments we’ve ever made to make sure we’re delivering exactly what our players are asking for.

“We’ve had so much feedback over the past few years from our players wanting to see more things they can control in career mode. We listened to what they want to be able to do, things they haven’t been able to do in the past.”

Players will be the ones to judge whether or not they have delivered on feedback, though. Many will be crossing their fingers.

Visual Sim is coming back

One thing we already knew, way before the trailer was even mentioned, was that Visual Simulation was coming back.

This feature allows managers to choose a point in the match where they can intervene.

Interactive Match Sim screenshot from FIFA 21
Visual sim is coming back in FIFA 21 Career.

Career Mode Transfers and contract changes

We should expect to see “enhanced realism” when it comes to sorting transfers in FIFA 21.

In an official statement, EA confirmed: “Make Loan to Buy offers with optional or mandatory future transfer fees to secure new talent for your team, and respond to AI manager-initiated player swap proposals as you look to master the transfer market.”

Some pre-order editions will include scout a future star bonus content as well, so it’s worth keeping an eye on the one you intend to buy. More info on rewards for Standard Edition, Champions Edition, and Ultimate Edition here – as well as pricing info.

Position training

Player position training in FIFA 21
Train players for new positions in FIFA 21.

For the first time, we will be able to officially change a position by training another player in a new role. For example, your wingers may be injured, so you can train up one of your fullbacks to step it up and fill in while they are gone.

Player development features have also been added, meaning you can train a few people at the same time.

Training schedule

FIFA 21 Career mode schedule
Active Training will let you train players and create their schedule to be super sharp for matchdays.

You can choose when players will rest and when they will train on a weekly basis, reflecting the schedules of real teams.

On Monday, you might want to improve match fitness, and then manage morale with days off. This will presumably also impact how sharp your team is when it lines up. So, don’t run them into the ground.

Player training

In terms of individual player training, we can now work on the following things:

  • Major Attributes (OVR)
  • Skill Move/Weak Foot ratings (especially for attacking players)
  • Attacking/Defensive Work Rate
  • Attributes that fuel specialization

Keep up to date with all things FIFA 21 with us on Twitter @UltimateTeamUK.