In an industry dominated by online multiplayer gaming, the offline career mode is thriving in EA Sports’ FIFA series. Developers have met the demands of career mode fans by introducing a number of new features in recent editions of the hit football gaming franchise. Career mode now goes toe-to-toe with the ever-popular FIFA Ultimate Team mode, and FIFA 23 is no different with exciting possibilities for fans and newcomers to career mode.
From developing future stars in the youth team to spending big with increased transfer budgets, career mode offers a great alternative to Ultimate Team. And if simply taking charge of a beloved team isn’t enough, the list of challenges is almost endless for those looking to test their managerial capabilities to the max.
Updated March 27, 2023, by Ritwik Mitra: FIFA 23 is a great video game that serves as EA's final foray with this iconic name after quite some time. While this split may be worrying, EA's stellar work on perfecting FIFA 23 has reassured many players that the next installment in this long-running series won't feature too many changes besides its name. One of the many great game modes that players can experiment with in the game is Career Mode, where there are plenty of great self-imposed challenges available for those who want to make their managerial path to glory all the more engaging and unpredictable.
15 Win The League In The First Season With A Relegation Team
It can be pretty hard to take over a team like Bournemouth or Southampton and bring them to the highest heights of the Premier League, but this is precisely what this challenge entails. Players need to make smart investments and maximize the potential of their squad to make this conquest a reality.
It can be tough, but skilled players with great tactics can get good results against even the best teams in the game. With a bit of effort and grit, a team that is currently facing relegation can go on to become champions in the game.
14 Manage Multiple Teams In The Same League
Being known as a manager who hops around between different clubs for short-term periods isn't exactly the greatest reputation to have. However, for what it's worth, this definitely makes for a great challenge for players in FIFA 23's Career Mode.
Players should ideally aim for the highest levels of success before moving on to a different team in the league and aspiring to do the same. It can be a tall order, but players who get lucky enough to manage five high-level teams in one league can help all of them become champions within half a decade.
13 Manage Teams Across All Major Continents
FIFA 23's Career Mode may not be as deep as other full-blown sports simulations, but it gets the job done. With that in mind, if players wish, then they can move over to a top league in a completely different continent after securing glory in their current job.
This can make for a lengthy endeavor, but a rewarding one all the same. After all, who doesn't dream about being the greatest football manager in the entire world?
12 Use A Different Formation Every Other Game
It's important to use a good formation that players can rely on to help them win games. While being dynamic helps, a system ensures that players can employ their strongest eleven to tackle the toughest teams in the game.
This challenge flips that script by making players employ a unique tactic for every game they play. A formation, once used, can't be reused until at least three or four more variations have been played right after.
11 Use A Different Squad Every Other Game
For this challenge, players should take a team like Manchester City or Real Madrid, which boasts a massive and talented squad full of talent. After all, replacing eleven players every other game can be pretty challenging, and players should ensure that the quality on the pitch remains intact.
This challenge really tests players to the very limit, especially if they have to deal with injuries as well. With enough grit and determination, most FIFA players should be able to achieve glory despite this handicap.
10 Road To Glory
For one of the most engaging and rewarding experiences in FIFA 23 career mode, ‘road to glory’ challenges are a fun way to trial what career mode has to offer. The aim is to transform the fortunes of some of FIFA 23’s worst-rated clubs by winning promotion to their nation’s top division before establishing the club as a significant domestic and continental force.
‘Road to glory’ is an all-time favorite for players and is best used in England’s EFL League Two where three promotions are required to reach the Premier League. It's one of the toughest challenges in FiFA 23's career mode, but also on of the most rewarding.
9 Youth Academy Focus
The ability to build and train up a youth academy is a feature exclusive to career mode in FIFA 23. With a little patience and effort, gamers can sculpt an entire starting XI around top-quality youth team graduates.
Training players to upgrade their overall rating is an essential part of Career Mode and doing it with stars of the future who joined the team as teenagers is even more satisfying. After scouting a selection of high-potential youngsters, try integrating them into the first team to create a starting line-up only made up of youth players.
8 Sell The Team's Best Players
If the AI difficulty levels aren’t challenging enough, career mode managers can take further measures to create problem-solving situations. This challenge requires selling a number of the highest-rated players (five is usually a good benchmark) and working around the ensuing shortfalls in talent by utilizing squad players or promoting a youngster.
It’s a situation that often plays out in real life when clubs need to generate funds to pay off debts. Whether managing in the Premier League, La Liga, or Bundesliga, learning to cope without the stars of the team is a test of skill on the controller as well as managerial decision-making.
7 Build The Greatest Team On Earth
FIFA 23 career mode’s increased transfer budget function allows fans to spend like there’s no tomorrow during transfer windows. Taking inspiration from Real Madrid’s galácticos team of the 2000s, add a ‘financial takeover’ of $1 billion at the start of Career Mode and simply build a team composed of the highest-rated players in FIFA 23.
Stepping into the shoes of Real Madrid club president Florentino Pérez might sound simple, however, equating superstar signings to constant on-pitch success isn’t always so easy. Every manager would love to use the likes of Messi, Ronaldo, Lewandowski, Neymar, and Vinicius Jr. in attack, but restricting one or two to warming the substitutes’ bench can rapidly cause friction.
6 Start From The Bottom With "Create Your Club"
EA introduced Create your Club as a headline development to career mode for FIFA 22, and some minor updates have been added for FIFA 23. Emulating the popularity of FIFA Ultimate Team’s endless customization options, new and returning career mode fans can take the reigns of their very own club in pursuit of glory.
This mode’s start-up settings allow gamers to effectively decide the exact level of difficulty for their career, and for one of the toughest tasks in FIFA 23, it’s recommended to select a low-rated squad, small transfer budget, and high board expectations. Starting from the lower leagues, Create your Club guarantees some harsh truths about one's true management qualities.
5 All Or Nothing: Win The League Every Year
For some football clubs, winning the league title is a necessity every season. Players can take that mantra to heart in FIFA 23 career mode by setting the very same goal, ensuring that the team is crowned league champions at the end of every season, otherwise, this Career Mode save file is a bust.
This challenge is particularly suited to those looking for the thrill of a high-stakes career mode, where constant league domination is a requirement. Make the job even harder by choosing to play out an ‘all or nothing’ career mode in one of Europe’s top five leagues (Premier League, La Liga, Serie A, Ligue 1, or Bundesliga).
4 The "Invincibles"
Going a full league campaign without defeat is one of football’s ultimate achievements, notably accomplished by Arsenal in the 2003-04 season and the Scottish Premiership’s Celtic in 2016-17. FIFA 23 career mode is the perfect place to try one's luck at an ‘invincible’ season, with the looming pressure of having to either win or draw every league match en route to winning the title.
In one of the most authentic manager challenges, intelligent use of squad rotation and navigation of continental competitions are important skills for career mode fans with ‘invincible’ aims.
3 Take Ted Lasso's AFC Richmond To The Premier League
FIFA 23’s most intriguing and unexpected new addition is the arrival of Ted Lasso’s AFC Richmond in the game. The fictitious London-based team from Apple TV’s well-received football comedy-drama series is now an option for career mode hopefuls to select at the beginning of their journey to dugout glory.
And best of all, EA has given career mode fans the ability to choose Ted Lasso as their manager avatar in career mode, complete with Nike trainers and that iconic mustache. It makes for an incredibly immersive experience, and it’s the player's task to restore Richmond to its English top-flight status.
2 Tiki-Taka Tactics
With just as much emphasis on tactics as in FIFA Ultimate Team, career mode is the ideal environment to embrace the renowned ‘tiki-taka’ possession-based playing style used by gaffers like Pep Guardiola and Vicente del Bosque. To apply their football theories most effectively, play every match in career mode with the goal of achieving a minimum of 60% possession and restart the game if one falls short.
‘Tiki-taka’ was largely engineered and trialed in Spanish football, so taking charge of famed La Liga giants like FC Barcelona or Real Madrid to face up to the challenge is a favorite for many career mode gamers. Editing the team’s tactical structures is a quick process but finding the correct formation and technically gifted players to match the ‘tiki-taka’ system could be a stumbling point.
1 Transfer Ban
Just as Chelsea of the English Premier League recently succumbed to a ban on signing new players by football’s top authorities following transfer violations, it’s possible to implement a similar situation in FIFA 23 career mode. While some light use of imagination is required later down the line, the game does allow users to switch the first transfer window off at the start of every career mode.
The transfer ban challenge provides the perfect baptism of fire for newcomers to career mode, forcing gamers to use their managerial initiative in the face of adversity. Hold out for as long as possible without making a single transfer and instead focus on the pathway from youth academy to first team or recall some loan players to bolster the squad.
FIFA 23 is available on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S|X, Nintendo Switch, and PC.