EA FC 26 New Year Overdrive Evolution: Best players to use, all upgrades, requirements, and more

EA Sports has released the EA FC 26 New Year Overdrive Evolution in Ultimate Team as the very first EVO of the new year, allowing fans to upgrade their right-backs on the virtual pitch. This is a free EVO and does not require any coins or FC Points to be unlocked, which will make it even more popular due to the various overpowered options available.

This is the final EVO to be released as part of the Winter Wildcards event. This promo has delivered some of the most exciting Evolutions of the year, so it is only fitting that it also provides fans with the EA FC 26 New Year Overdrive Evolution, which is the first EVO of 2026.

All requirements of the EA FC 26 New Year Overdrive Evolution

The requirements (Image via EA Sports)

A player must meet the following requirements to be eligible for the EA FC 26 New Year Overdrive Evolution:

• Overall rating: Max 85
• Position: RB
• Must not be: CB
• Defending: Max 82
• PlayStyles: Max 10
• PlayStyles+: Max one
• Must not be: World Tour Silver Superstars Icon

Best players to use in the EA FC 26 New Year Overdrive Evolution

While the maximum defending restriction will limit the number of players you can use in this EVO, there are still some overpowered options like:

• Buchanan: 85
• Timothy Weah: 85
• Wesley: 85
• Johnston: 85
• Julian Araujo: 85
• Honorat: 85
• Marcos Llorente: 84
• Malo Gusto: 84
• Aarons: 84
• Niamh Charles: 84
• Jeremie Frimpong: 83
• Idrissa Toure: 83
• Lewis Miley: 83

All these players will become capable defenders under the FC IQ system via this EVO.

All upgrades and challenges of the EA FC 26 New Year Overdrive Evolution

The EVO has five levels (Image via EA Sports)

Similar to the recently released Snow Shadow and Glacial Creator EVOs, the EA FC 26 New Year Overdrive Evolution also has five levels. These are the boosts offered by each level:

Level 1 upgrades:

• Skill moves +2 star
• RB Attacking Wingback++
• Quickstep PlayStyle
• Ball control +15 (Max 88)

Level 2 upgrades:

• Pinged Pass Playstyle
• Reactions +15 (Max 88)
• Dribbling +15 (Max 87)
• Long Passing +25 (Max 85)
• Stamina +15 (Max 88)

Level 3 upgrades:

• Defending +10 (Max 80)
• Aggression +15 (Max 80)
• Curve +25 (Max 88)
• Balance +15 (Max 88)
• Shooting +30 (Max 83)

Level 4 upgrades:

• RB Wingback++
• Strength +15 (Max 80)
• Agility +15 (Max 93)
• Short Passing +25 (Max 86)
• Composure +15 (Max 85)
• Sprint Speed +15 (Max 91)

Level 5 upgrades:

• Quickstep+ PlayStyle
• RB Inverted Wingback++
• Technical PlayStyle
• Crossing +25 (Max 92)
• Acceleration +15 (Max 91)
• Vision +25 (Max 85)

These are the tasks fans will have to complete across multiple Ultimate Team game modes to obtain all of the available boosts:

Level 1 challenges:

• Play one match in Squad Battles on minimum Semi Pro difficulty (or Rush/Rivals/Champions/Live Events) using your active EVO player.

Level 2 challenges:

• Play one match in Squad Battles on minimum Semi Pro difficulty (or Rush/Rivals/Champions/Live Events) using your active EVO player.

Level 3 challenges:

• Play one match in Squad Battles on minimum Semi Pro difficulty (or Rush/Rivals/Champions/Live Events) using your active EVO player.

Level 4 challenges:

• Play one match in Squad Battles on minimum Semi Pro difficulty (or Rush/Rivals/Champions/Live Events) using your active EVO player.

Level 5 challenges:

• Play one match in Squad Battles on minimum Semi Pro difficulty (or Rush/Rivals/Champions/Live Events) using your active EVO player.

Overall, the EVO is worth completing as it is entirely free.

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Edited by Shivanshu Raturi