FIFA 22: Best Countries For Nationality-Based Team Builds

Most FIFA players tend to focus their Ultimate Team building efforts around a particular league. The top five European domestic competitions tend to be the most popular choices amongst new and experienced players alike. Those who are up for a challenge usually pick leagues that are somewhat away from the spotlight, but where one can still find quality talents, such as the MLS or Chinese Super League.

However, there is another, quite overlooked factor FIFA players can build their Ultimate Teams around while managing to reach the maximum chemistry rating: nationality. Building a team around the footballers' countries of origin can be an interesting challenge, especially in the very beginning, when the budget is limited and one has to jump through all sorts of hoops to find high-quality cards at reasonable prices.

Updated May 29, 2022, by Maciej Grzymkowski: With the end of the season right around the corner, fans of the beautiful game will have no choice but to turn to FIFA 22 for their dose of football excitement. The summer is also a great time to experiment with FUT team builds and get some new, fresh ideas for the next iteration of the franchise that will inevitably get released in the fall. Players who tend to go for nationality-based team builds often get locked into a few obvious choices due to the overabundance of highly-rated players within certain national teams. Seeing as the period of FIFA experimentation is fast approaching, we've decided to throw a few more challenging nationalities into the mix for those wanting to switch things up a bit.

11 Poland

Best players: Robert Lewandowski, Wojciech Szczesny, Piotr Zielinski

In recent years, the Polish national team has shown quite a bit of promise, especially in terms of how its players perform for their respective clubs. With Robert Lewandowski smashing goal-scoring records in the Bundesliga on a regular basis, and an increasing number of Polish youngsters getting picked up by Premier League clubs now might be a good time for FIFA players to get familiar with the players representing this country.

With a solid spine of Wojciech Szczesny (goalkeeper), Piotr Zielinski (central midfielder), and Robert Lewandowski (striker), building an all-Polish FUT Champions-winning team is not as far-fetched as it once was. Combined with the fact that most of the highly-rated Poles play in the top five European leagues, it won't be too difficult to find players coming from other countries to fill in the gaps.

10 Germany

Best players: Marc-André ter Stegen, Joshua Kimmich, Toni Kroos

A claim that can be made about the German national team is that they are over-reliant on a core lineup of players who are well past their prime, the group that won them the 2014 FIFA World Cup. Thankfully, in FIFA 22's Ultimate Team mode, the age doesn't really matter, and it's all about stats.

With one of the best goalkeepers in the world, a world-class midfield pair of Joshua Kimmich and Toni Kroos, and a roster of talented strikers and wingers the likes of Thomas Muller or Leroy Sane, FIFA players are not short of options that will intimidate their opponents' defenses.

9 Netherlands

Best players: Virgil Van Dijk, Matthias De Ligt, Memphis Depay

The Dutch national team's performances at international tournaments over the past couple of years have been very uneven, to say the least. They were third at the 2014 World Cup, but they haven't even qualified for the next one in 2018. The same goes for the European tournaments, where they've crashed out during the group stages or rounds of 16.

Recently, however, a crop of young players from the Netherlands have proven themselves at the highest levels of club competitions, which is reflected in this year's FIFA player ratings. With Virgil Van Dijk at the core of defense, accompanied by the likes of Frenkie De Jong and Memphis Depay further down the pitch, the best possible Dutch Ultimate Team can break down even the most star-studded squads.

8 Argentina

Best players: Lionel Messi, Angel Di Maria, Paolo Dybala

Despite having Lionel Messi in their ranks, the Argentinian national team hasn't experienced as much international tournament glory as some pundits expected it to after playing in the 2014 World Cup final. The lack of the national team's success doesn't mean that its players have also been underperforming in club competitions.

Players like Messi, Angel Di Maria, or Paolo Dybala are still some of the best footballers of this generation and can lay the foundation for an all-Argentine FUT team build ready to challenge any opponent. With players like Emiliano Martinez (GK), Otamendi (CB), or Tagliafico (LB) at the back and a decent array of midfielders to support the superstar attackers, it can be possible to build an affordable Argentinian team without having to settle for a single card rated below 80 OVR.

7 England

Best players: Raheem Sterling, Harry Kane, Jadon Sancho

Seeing as the overwhelming majority of English players ply their trade in the Premier League, their home country's primary domestic competition, England is the best country to choose for players who want to go for the most complete Chemistry build. The English have some fantastic options for each of the positions on the field, but attacking firepower is definitely where they shine the most.

Players like Harry Kane, Jadon Sancho, and Raheem Sterling will enable skilled players to carry out flawless link-up plays in the final third. Even without the budget for the absolute best players, some of the cheaper options are also perfectly viable, with players such as Declan Rice or Marcus Rashford providing a lot of quality without costing ungodly amounts of FUT coins.

6 Brazil

Best players: Neymar Jr, Alisson, Casemiro

Many pundits and soccer fans around the world will argue that the "Golden Age" of Brazilian football is over. However, considering that the Brazilian national team has consistently won international tournaments for decades on end now, the reverse may be true: Brazil always comes out on top when looked at in the long run, and the passing decade was just a mere slump in form.

Regardless of the opinions on their current form, Brazilian players still have plenty to offer to FIFA 22 players. With Neymar leading the front line and Alisson keeping things secure between the goalposts, building a team out of the absolute best Brazilians will result in a seriously overpowered roster. Players who are low on FUT coins should look toward the Brasileirao (the national league) for fairly cheap players with high pace, four-to-five-star skill moves, and impeccable link-up play.

5 Spain

Best players: Sergio Ramos, Jordi Alba, Parejo

Sergio Ramos may be the only current Spanish national team member to remember the 2008-2012 glory days when the Spaniards claimed two European Champion titles and one World Cup, but that doesn't mean that there isn't plenty of quality in this squad nowadays.

With young, up-and-coming stars like Pedri or Ansu Fati already boasting some pretty great stats (especially when it comes to pace and passing), and a couple of aging, high OVR superstars to support them, Spain might just be the most balanced nationality one can think of when it comes to building a rock-solid FUT squad.

4 Italy

Best players: Ciro Immobile, Giorgio Chiellini, Marco Verratti

The Italian national team is a very peculiar case. They are oftentimes overlooked by pundits when it comes to predicting the winners of the next major international tournament, and yet, they usually manage to get to the final stages of these competitions on the regular basis. Just this year, they've bested England in the EURO 2020 final to claim the title of the champions of the Old Continent.

Much like in the case of the Germans, the very best Italian players are nearing their thirties (in the case of Giorgio Chiellini, they're well past that mark). This means that their pace ratings aren't as high as they could be, but they more than make up for it with vision, defensive play, and pinpoint accurate passing. With the likes of Verratti, Immobile, or Chiesa, compiling an Italian Ultimate Team is a great choice for all those who prioritize a tactical approach over the chaotic, more skill-based take on FIFA 22.

3 Portugal

Best players: Cristiano Ronaldo, Bruno Fernandes, Bernardo Silva

Portugal is a star-studded team that has consistently managed to reach the semi-final stages of the most important international tournaments, even going as far as winning the EURO 2016. With Cristiano Ronaldo, arguably the greatest player to have ever graced the game, as part of their roster, it should come as no surprise.

The Portuguese midfield provides some very interesting options for any manager -- the mind-bogglingly creative Bruno Fernandes and his passing and vision stats will ensure a steady supply of great passes into the final third of the pitch, and the pace and dribbling of Bernando Silva make him a very versatile player, who can do just as well in the middle of the pitch as he does on either one of the wings.

2 Belgium

Best players: Kevin De Bruyne, Thibault Courtouis, Eden Hazard

The "Golden Generation" of the Belgian national team is a peculiar case. They currently have one of the best teams on Earth, and yet they still struggle to turn all of that talent into silverware.

Players with an abundance of FUT coins should immediately invest in a Belgian nationality build. With Kevin De Bruyne and Eden Hazard dictating the terms of play and Romelu Lukaku capable of easily converting even the most unlikely of chances into goals, Belgian players are as good as it gets in this year's iteration of FIFA. Even some of the budget options, such as Axel Witsel or Thorgen Hazard will energize any team with their blistering pace and highly-rated dribbling skills.

1 France

Best players: Kylian Mbappe, Karim Benzema, N'Golo Kante

The current World Cup winners are quite obviously the best choice for any Ultimate Team player aspiring to dominate the FUT Champions Weekend League week in and week out. The squad depth of the French national team is so rich that even those with smaller budgets can get world-class players into their squads simply because of the sheer abundance of top-quality French footballers out there.

Had the 84-rated Anthony Martial been of any other nationality, his prices would be through the roof. However, due to the fact that he needs to compete for game time with the likes of Kylian Mbappe, Karim Benzema, or Antoine Griezmann, his value is significantly lower in FIFA 22. The same goes for many footballers in other positions, making France the best country to build an Ultimate Team around, regardless of one's budget restrictions.

FIFA 22 was released on September 26, 2021, and is available on PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, Google Stadia, and Nintendo Switch.

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