Ultimate Team First Week Guide for Beginners
By: GameFutMarket Team · Last updated: · 8 min read
When you first start Ultimate Team, everything lands on you at once. Packs, SBCs, the transfer market, daily objectives, weekly rewards. Try to understand it all together and you either get overwhelmed and quit, or spend every coin you have on day one. Neither is necessary. In this guide we give new FC Ultimate Team players a simple seven-day plan: a small goal each day, what to do and what to avoid.
What to Know Before You Start
Ultimate Team is the mode where you build your own football club. You collect player cards, build a squad, play matches and earn rewards. Those cards and the in-game currency, coins, grow as you invest time in the game. You can find the basics in our What Are FC Coins article.
Accept two things up front: your squad will not be very strong in week one, and that is fine. The goal is to learn the game and avoid picking up bad habits.
Day 1: Don't Rush
When you log in, open the starter packs you are given, build your squad and finish the in-game tutorials. Don't spend your coins right away. On day one, just learn where the menus are and how the cards look.
Do: Open the starter packs, set your squad, finish the tutorials. Don't: Put all your coins into a single card.
Day 2: Play Matches
Start with easier modes like Squad Battles. You get used to the game and collect end-of-match rewards. Because the opponent is AI in these modes, you can learn without fear of mistakes. Play a few matches and see how your squad feels.
Do: Play 3-5 matches and note which position is weak. Don't: Jump into the hardest modes in the first days.
Day 3: Collect Objectives
Look through the daily and weekly objectives. Many of them get completed just by playing. The rewards look small, but collected regularly they add up.
Do: Check the objectives list and finish the easy ones. Don't: Force yourself to do something you hate just to finish an objective.
Day 4: Look at SBCs
See which SBCs are active. For beginners, small, easy and cheap ones are the right fit. Skip the big, expensive ones for now. We explain how to work out the cost in our SBC guide.
Do: Try a small, cheap SBC. Don't: Spend expensive cards just because the reward looks tempting.
Day 5: Watch the Market
Go into the transfer market and watch the prices of cheap players. You don't have to buy anything. Just notice how much a card's price moves during the day. For the logic of the market, see our transfer market guide.
Do: Check the price of 5-6 cards a few times during the day. Don't: Jump at the first "bargain" you see.
Day 6: Fix Your Squad Chemistry
Good players alone are not enough. Putting together players from the same league, nation or club raises chemistry. A squad with high chemistry often plays better than a scattered one made of stronger cards.
Do: Arrange your squad by league or nation links. Don't: Put in a mismatched player just because his rating is high.
Day 7: Review
At the end of the week, look at your coins and your squad. What went well, which spending was wasted, and what should you focus on next week? Even a simple note makes a difference.
Do: Write down this week's gains and losses. Don't: Lose motivation over the results. Everyone struggles in the first week.
First-Week Mistakes
- Putting all your coins into one player on day one
- Pinning too much hope on what comes out of packs
- Giving account details to sites you don't know
- Making market moves without understanding the market
- Forgetting daily rewards and objectives
Thoughts on Coins
Some people will want to buy coins to move faster. We wrote openly about the risks and what to watch for in our article on what to check when buying coins. A reminder: EA's official purchase route is FC Points. Not buying at all is a perfectly valid path too.
To manage the game remotely, our Web App and Companion App guide will make life easier. If something confuses you, check our help page or write to us on the contact page.
How to Think About Coins in Week One: A Worked Example
The question new players ask most is "how much of my coin should go out?" There is no fixed number, but having a frame in your head helps. The numbers below are purely examples, and real in-game prices change constantly.
Say you have saved up 20,000 coins by the end of week one. You could think of a split like this:
- 10,000 coins stay aside: an emergency and opportunity reserve
- 6,000 coins go to the two weakest positions in your squad
- 4,000 coins go toward collecting cards for a small SBC
Remember that selling a card on the market costs roughly 5 percent in tax. If you sell a card for 10,000 coins, count on receiving about 9,500. So buying a card at 10,000 and selling it at 10,000 is a loss. To profit, the gap between buy and sell has to cover the tax. The rate can change, so check the current figure in the game or on the EA Help Center.
If you want to go deeper on how the market works, our transfer market guide continues this math.
Common Mistakes and How to Fix Them
The table below collects the problems seen most often in week one and what to do about them.
| Situation | Why it is a problem | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| A high-rated card came out of a pack but doesn't fit your squad | Chemistry breaks, and you notice while playing | Don't force it in, set it aside for an SBC or a sale |
| Squad is full but you keep losing | Usually a chemistry or formation issue | Check chemistry first, then try another formation |
| Coins ran out, squad is still weak | All the spending went on one card | Spend small and balanced next week |
| You saw a "very cheap" card on the market | The price looks low but there may be a reason | Check the same card's price a few times, don't rush |
| You forgot daily objectives | Small rewards don't add up | Open the objectives screen every time you log in |
The sneakiest of these is the chemistry problem nobody notices. Checking the chemistry indicator after you build a squad takes two seconds, but it can change how matches feel quite a lot.
"I'm Stuck": What to Do
Feeling stuck in week one is completely normal. Try this:
If you keep losing: Don't move up a mode right away. Take a step back, play a few matches in an easier mode, and review your squad and formation. You need to tell whether the losses come from the squad or from how you play.
If coins aren't building up: Keep a spending log. You can even write it in your phone. Once you see what you spent on, it often turns out one habit is eating your coins.
If SBCs scare you: Pick only the smallest one. The expensive ones with big rewards won't be waiting for you to fail. We explain the logic step by step in our SBC guide.
If you want to manage the game from your phone: To handle the market and squad edits remotely, check our Web App and Companion App guide. Which platform you play on matters too, so our platform choice article may help.
End-of-Week Checklist
At the end of day seven, ask yourself these questions and write down the answers:
- Which position is weakest in my squad?
- Which mode did I enjoy most?
- Did I get my money's worth from the coins I spent this week?
- Are there objectives or rewards I haven't completed?
- Which of the cards I watched on the market moved differently than I expected?
- What is my single goal for next week?
The last question matters. Instead of "I will do everything", pick one goal: fix chemistry, finish a small SBC or strengthen one position. A clear goal at the end of week one keeps week two from going to waste.
What People Search on Google
How do you earn coins in Ultimate Team? By playing matches, completing objectives, and learning how SBCs and the market work. There is no fast route, but with regular play your balance slowly grows.
Should I sell cards in the first week? You can, but factor in the tax. If a card fits your squad, keeping it makes sense. If it doesn't, consider it for an SBC or a sale.
Is buying coins a good idea for week one? That is a personal decision. EA's official purchase route is FC Points. Buying coins or accounts from third parties may not align with EA and platform terms and carries risk. Read what to watch for when buying coins before deciding, and ask us on the contact page if in doubt. Progressing without buying anything is a perfectly valid way to play.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where should I start in Ultimate Team?
First open the starter packs, finish the tutorials and ease in with friendlier modes like Squad Battles. Don't spend your coins on day one.
How many coins should I spend in the first week?
As few as possible. In week one it is better to learn the game and the market and make small, safe purchases.
Is it worth opening packs?
What comes out of packs is down to luck. Keep your expectations low and use packs for your objectives or SBCs.
How important is squad chemistry?
Quite important. A squad built from players of the same league, nation or club generally performs better than a mismatched squad with higher ratings.
This article was written by the GameFutMarket team and is updated regularly.