FC 27 is shifting more control to the player across defending, attacking, and set pieces, cutting down on automation based on community feedback. These exciting new changes can be seen in gameplay releases!

Defending

AI defenders are stepping back in FC 27, at least in Competitive modes. Instead of automatically diving in for tackles, your teammates will now hold their position and support the play, leaving it up to you to jump in and win the ball yourself. To make up for that, manual defending has been beefed up too, with quicker jockey speed and a longer reach on stand tackles, so switching to the right player and reading the attacker actually pays off. Teammate Contain has also been loosened a bit, meaning AI teammates will hang back further when marking a dribbler, pushing you to take over if you want real pressure.

Attacking Movement

Off ball movement got smarter too. AI attackers read space better and make more natural curved runs instead of predictable straight ones. You’ve also got two new manual run types, Triggered Curved Runs (L1+R1 or LB+RB) and Pass & Follow Runs (L1+R1+X or LB+RB+A), both of which let players bend their runs into open space, though they take a bit longer to develop. One key change is that these triggered runs no longer go on forever. They’ll stop after a certain distance unless you trigger them again, which is meant to keep things feeling more intentional and realistic.

Passing

Through passes no longer auto-correct toward open lanes, so your aim actually determines where the ball goes now, for better or worse. Dinked passes went fully manual as well, meaning your precision on aim and power really matters if you want them to land.

Off-Balance Dribbling

Top dribblers can now stay on their feet and keep control even after getting bumped or shoulder challenged, thanks to their Balance, Agility, and Dribbling attributes. You’ll see a stumble animation, but you’re still in control the whole time. This one’s only on current-gen consoles and PC though, not last-gen.

Palystyles

A handful of PlayStyles got rebalanced so attributes matter more relative to having the PlayStyle itself. Finesse Shot, Technical Dribbler, Intercept, Rapid, Quick Step, Pinged Pass, Tiki Taka, Jockey, Precision Header, and Low Driven all saw tweaks aimed at narrowing the gap between base attribute players and PlayStyle players, so the game feels less like the PlayStyle alone wins you the matchup.

This is the most control you’ve ever had over a match, from the tackle you time perfectly to the header you fight for in the box. FC 27 arrives September 25, 2026, don’t miss it!