How Many Icons Are There on FIFA 23?
Over the years, EA Sports’ FIFA franchise has completely revolutionized gaming in more ways than you could imagine. Their FIFA eWorld Cup - previously named FIFA Interactive World Cup - was one of the planet’s very first eSports tournaments. It arrived on the scene way back in 2004 and is still going strong even today. The most recent edition of the tournament took place last year, with Germany’s Umut Gültekin claiming the crown with a penalty shootout victory against Argentina’s Nicolas Villalba.
They were also pioneers for gaming companies in finding ways to earn even more money. That came via the Ultimate Team game mode, which was launched way back in 2009. FUT has become the most popular mode in FIFA, overtaking the likes of career mode, ranked online matches, and pro clubs.
FIFA Ultimate Team
Ultimate Team features a loot box-like system in which gamers can spend real money on ‘packs’ in an attempt to strengthen their team. For those of you that like to explore popular online slots at reputable platforms like SlotsLV, then FIFA packs will be perfect for you. The system is somewhat luck based, with different packs providing a different percentage chance of bagging yourself one of the planet's players. Another feature that Ultimate Team has given us is icon cards. There are 100 icon cards in FIFA 23, and the cards available are some of the greatest footballers to have ever played the game.
Despite being retired for many years, the likes of Ronaldinho, Zinedine Zidane, and David Beckham are available to play with in the game, allowing gamers to step back in time and experience some of the greatest players that have ever lived.
There are icons available from numerous different generations. There are players from your grandparents' era, your parents' era, and even you’re era. With that being said, let's take a look at some of the best icons available in FIFA 23.
Old Times
The highest-rated icon in the game is currently Brazilian superstar Pele. His prime icon card is rated a whopping 98 overall and is pretty much unstoppable. Since the emergence of Lionel Messi, Pele - alongside Diego Maradona, who unfortunately doesn’t have an icon card this year - the former Santos sensation was considered the greatest player to have ever lived.
There are plenty of other players from his era as well. The likes of Ferenc Puskás (94), Lev Yashin (94), Garrincha (94), Eusébio (93), and George Best (93) are all available to play with. England’s World Cup-winning captain from 1966, Bobby Moore, is also available in the game and has a rating of 92 overall. And you can take it from us, the game does the West Ham legend justice… he is an absolute brick wall in the heart of any defense.
Golden Era
The 1970s and 1980s are considered by many to be the golden era of professional football. Throughout these two decades, football truly became a global sport thanks to FIFA - football’s governing body, not the game that bears the same name - signing a plethora of sponsorship deals the world over in an attempt to boost the profile of the sport, and rake in plenty of cash of course. Just ask your parents, they will tell you about the glory days.
If we discard the aforementioned Maradona, then Johan Cruyff was perhaps the greatest player of this generation, and EA Sports have included the original Flying Dutchman in FIFA 23. The Barcelona legend led the Netherlands to back-to-back FIFA World Cup finals in 1974 and 1978. However, they were beaten on both occasions, firstly by West Germany and then Argentina.
He has a rating of 94 overall and is a frightening prospect to play against. Other players from his generation include Gerd Müller (94), Kenny Dalglish (92), Jairzinho (92), and Ian Rush (91).
Modern Greats
And finally, we have the most recent era of recently retired stars. For many gamers aged in their 20s, many of these players are their childhood heroes, and FIFA allows them to go back and enjoy the players they idolized growing up. Before the days of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, Brazil’s Ronaldinho was the greatest player on the planet. He could do things with a football that most could only ever dream of, and EA Sports have given him a rating of 94, which is slightly underwhelming.
Former France captain Zinedine Zidane (96) is rated higher, however, he too was one of the greatest players that the planet has ever seen. He led Les Bleus to their maiden FIFA World Cup triumph, scoring twice in the 1998 final against Brazil. The star man for the beaten finalists that year was the original Ronaldo, R9 as many know him, and he has an overall rating of 96 also.
Recent Premier League legends such as Thierry Henry (93), Didier Drogba (91), Fernando Torres (91), and Wayne Rooney (91) are all featured. Italy’s World Cup-winning squad was one of the best international teams of all time, and three men crucial to their success, Fabio Cannavaro (92), Alessandro Del Piero (92), and Andrea Pirlo (92) are included. The English midfield trident of Steven Gerrard (91), Frank Lampard (90), and Paul Scholes (91) can also be purchased in-game, and they are at a somewhat discounted price on the market compared to other players.