Everyone’s favourite football simulator got a beautiful new update this year, and we’re really excited to explore everything the game has to offer. One of the most interesting changes that came with the new version is that they’ve implemented more realistic gameplay and dynamic trading and training systems, making the game feel like you’re actually bringing a team to the championships. Here are some tips for winning the Champions League in FIFA 21’s Career Mode.

The Champions League

The Champions League is a high-ranking game mode within FIFA 21; you can play it on its own or within three other game modes - Kick-Off mode, Career Mode, and the FIFA 21 Ultimate Team.

Career Mode is one of the most popular game modes because it allows you to play a full career as either a team manager or a player. It’s ideal for those who don’t always want to engage with the online world and are content living their football dreams in solitude.

FIFA 21 brings us some amazing additions to Career Mode - a dynamic user interface, redesigned league standings and fixture lists, and even a rule change allowing for a fourth substitution in extra time.

Choosing Your Team

When you’re trying to get through the Champions League in Career Mode, you’re going to want a good team behind you. No matter which team you’ve selected, there are some strategies for ensuring that you’ve built a team that takes you to the top.

1. Potential is key

When you’re searching for quality players to recruit, their potential stat is one of the first things you should be looking at. You’re likely to lose your high-quality players to trades and retirement in the early seasons of your career, so it’s important to get players who have the potential to develop into stars in the long term.

A huge factor in ensuring that you get the best young talent available is hiring good scouts. The scouts that are available to you will vary depending on which club you’ve decided to use, but it goes without saying that having better scouts gives you a better shot at recruiting the next football superstar.

2. Rotate your players

Competing in the Champions League means that you’re going to be playing in a lot of games, and that means you need to ensure that your best players aren’t getting burnt out or becoming more susceptible to injuries before your Championship games. The best way to do this is to rotate reserve or youth players into starting positions in lower-stakes games so that your top talent gets a break.

3. Shop for release clause deals and contract renewals

A release clause is a part of a player’s contract that means a club will be forced to accept any purchasing deal that meets that clause. Release clauses can be a fantastic way to get talented players at discounted rates, allowing you to build a great team without breaking your budget. From FIFA 19, Career Mode has included the ability to search by release clause while shopping around for players, so this strategy is also super easy.

The other strategy for getting great players without spending your entire budget on them is to monitor the Global Scouting Network. In FIFA 21, the AI automatically renews the contracts of their best players, so use the search function to look for players that are available on a free in January to get players for little to no cash.

4. Training is key

Training your players is essential for a great team - especially when you’re bringing in a lot of young talent with high Potential, you need to mould them into great players through specific training drills. Train as many players as possible per week, and remember to rotate them so everyone’s getting some good practice.

The best training settings for FIFA 21’s career mode are to set a rest day before the match, a recovery day after the match, and intermittent training as your weekly plan. This ensures that your athletes aren’t pushing themselves too far and injuring themselves, but ensures that they’re always getting adequate training so they’re at the top of their game.

Tactics

Of course, you can’t have an all-star team without all-star tactics. FIFA 21 introduces a dynamic tactics feature that allows you to customize your tactics before the game and make adjustments on the fly while the game goes on. You can customize your formations, mentalities, and the play styles for both attacking and defending.

It’s best to tailor your tactics to the strongest players of your team while ensuring that your weaker or developing players are supported. There’s no perfect book of football tactics, but you can find a rhythm that works for you and your team.

1. Utilize Timed Finishing

Game results are often determined by the tiniest of margins in FIFA 21, so it’s important to make the most of the Timed Finishing mechanic. This mechanic allows you to precision time your shots, giving you more control over the miniscule margins that determine if you win or lose. Start practicing with this mechanic as early as possible and make it a well-used part of your repertoire.

2. Make the most of your game plans

The Champions League is the toughest club competition in Career Mode, so you can’t just run into games willy-nilly and hope for the best. The game scenarios get progressively more challenging as the games go on, so it’s important to always have a good game plan in hand and make the most of the Dynamic Tactics feature that was first implemented in FIFA 19. You can customize your team’s tactics for specific in-game mentalities, such as attacking and defensive.

Bring Your Team to Victory!

In the end, there’s no perfect formula for winning the Champions League in Career Mode. It comes down to getting good players, training, and putting the time and effort into crafting a great team. We hope you have a great time in your FIFA 21 career!