EA FC 26 continues to enhancements and upgrade the football simulation experience by focusing on the fundamentals of gameplay.
Drawing heavily from community feedback, EA SPORTS has introduced significant improvements to dribbling, defending, attacking and defensive positioning, physical, online responsiveness—and most notably, passing and shooting.
Among the most requested improvements: Passing and Shooting. In previous titles, many players noted that both could feel sluggish or unbalanced. EA FC 26 tackles this head-on with a reworked system that enhances control, sharpens responsiveness, and adds new depth across both Competitive and Authentic gameplay mods.
In our last deep dive, we covered Goalkeeper Enhancements . Now, let’s jump right into the massive changes coming to Passing and Shooting.
Table of Contents
Passing Responsiveness
Passes now feel quicker and more intuitive thanks to reworked animations and smarter logic. EA has refined how players perform first-time passes, especially when under pressure or in tight spaces.
Wider Passing Angles: Animation restrictions have been lifted to allow passes across a broader range of angles.
Faster Animations: First-touch passes now trigger faster animations where appropriate, like short-distance passes.
Improved Behind-the-Back Passes: Increased animation coverage for 135° and 180° passes, enabling contextual backheels. However, in Competitive gameplay, these passes are less accurate to prevent abuse through Directed Runs.
Quicker Short Passes: Low-power, short-range passes now activate faster, minimizing wind-up.
Note: In Competitive modes, first-time passes are still less accurate to maintain balance, even though they’re faster.
Smarter Through Passes
New Passing Lane logic makes semi-assisted through passes smarter. By aiming between defenders (the lane), the game identifies the best receiver based on player intention.
- Better Leading: Through balls are more precise, giving receivers a better run into space.
Other Passing Changes
- Receiver Selection: Ground and through pass targeting is more reliable.
- Crosses: Improved lead positioning and boosted accuracy in easy conditions.
- Ground Passes: Less curve, straighter trajectory. Teammates will hold position more consistently.
- Lob Passes: Now fly in flatter arcs when the path is clear.
- Goalkeeper Throws: Better target selection.
- Clearances: Enhanced logic for quicker and cleaner clearances.
Shooting Responsiveness
To reward player input more effectively, EA has improved shot responsiveness in EA FC 26. Players should now feel a tighter link between pressing the shot button and the animation.
- Close-Range Finishing: Shots near goal trigger snappier animations with less wind-up.
- Shooting Angles: Players can now shoot across more angles with fewer restrictions.
Low Driven Shots Return, Timed Finishing Removed
In EA FC 26, Low Driven Shots have been reintroduced as a universal modifier. By double-tapping the shot button after powering up, players can trigger low-driven shots in nearly every scenario (excluding chips).
Low Driven Shot Combos:
- Low Driven Lace Shot:
- Circle (Hold to power up) + Circle
- B (Hold to power up) + B
- Low Driven Finesse:
- R1 + Circle (Hold to power up) + Circle
- RB + B (Hold to power up) + B
- Low Driven Trivela:
- L2 + Circle (Hold to power up) + Circle
- LT + B (Hold to power up) + B
- Low Driven Flair Shot:
- L2 + Circle (Hold to power up) + Circle
- LT + B (Hold to power up) + B
- Low Driven Power Shot:
- L1 + R1 + Circle (Hold to power up) + Circle
- LB + RB + B (Hold to power up) + B
- Low Driven Volley:
- In Air Shot – Circle (Hold to power up) + Circle
- In Air Shot – B (Hold to power up) + B
- Low Driven Header:
- In Air Jump – Circle (Hold to power up) + Circle
- In Air Jump – B (Hold to power up) + B
Timed Finishing has been removed. EA noted that it didn’t provide meaningful skill depth, was hard to balance, and often led to frustrating inconsistencies—especially on long shots.
Removing Timed Finishing allows for better balance and creates room for Precision Shooting to take the spotlight. This system emphasizes player input through aim, timing, and power for fairer and more consistent results.
Trivela Shots Tied to Gamechanger PlayStyle
A major change: Trivela Shots are now exclusive to players with the new Gamechanger PlayStyle or PlayStyle+.
- Without this trait, a player will default to a lace shot when attempting a trivela.
- This update reduces abuse of trivela shots from unrealistic angles and keeps Competitive modes more balanced.
Final Whistle
With the overhaul to Passing and Shooting, the gameplay feels tighter, smarter, and more skill-based.
Whether you’re threading the perfect through ball or lining up a Low Driven finish in the box, EA FC 26 is shaping up to offer a football experience that rewards control, strategy, and execution.
Stay tuned for more deep dives into other gameplay areas like defending, dribbling, and positioning.
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