Best Men’s & Women's OVRs

Each year, the statisticians at EA Sports attempt a daunting task: quantifying the skills of footballers around the world. EA Sports FC 26 will feature over 750 clubs from more than 35 professional leagues, but the announcements of player ratings have begun with just the best of the best. In honor of the titular number, the top 26 men and top 26 women in world football (soccer, for some of us) have been announced first.

Unsurprisingly, EA FC 26‘s two cover athletes have made the cut. The top 26 OVRs for men hail exclusively from the major European clubs, while the women’s side has much of the same, but a decent showing from the rapidly growing NWSL. Many of these names will likely be centerpieces in EA FC 26‘s Ultimate Team, and some breakout stars are surging in their player ratings.

EA FC 26: Top 26 Men’s OVRs

Salah Rivals Mbappé

The headliner for EA FC 26‘s top player ratings is Liverpool winger Mohamed Salah, who has tied Real Madrid striker Kylian Mbappé for the top spot. Mbappé has held his esteemed position for a few years running, but now has some company at the loft 91 OVR. Here’s the top 26 EA FC 26 men’s players, by OVR:

OVR	Name	Club	Position
91	Mohamed Salah	Liverpool	RM
91	Kylian Mbappé	Real Madrid	ST
90	Ousmane Dembélé	Paris Saint-Germain	ST
90	Rodrigo Hernández Cascante	Manchester City	CDM
90	Virgil van Dijk	Liverpool	CB
90	Jude Bellingham	Real Madrid	CAM
90	Erling Haaland	Manchester City	ST
89	Raphael Dias Belloli	FC Barcelona	LM
89	Lamine Yamal	FC Barcelona	RM
89	Achraf Hakimi	Paris Saint-Germain	RB
89	Vitor Machado Ferreira	Paris Saint-Germain	CM
89	Gianluigi Donnarumma	Manchester City	GK
89	Pedro González López	FC Barcelona	CM
89	Joshua Kimmich	FC Bayern München	CDM
89	Alisson Ramses Becker	Liverpool	GK
89	Harry Kane	FC Bayern München	ST
89	Federico Valverde	Real Madrid	CM
89	Vinícius José de Oliveira Júnior	Real Madrid	LW
89	Florian Wirtz	Liverpool	CAM
89	Thibaut Courtois	Real Madrid	GK
88	Robert Lewandowski	FC Barcelona	ST
88	Lautaro Martínez	Lombardia FC (Inter)	ST
88	Alexander Isak	Liverpool	ST
88	Jamal Musiala	FC Bayern München	CAM
88	Gabriel dos Santos Magalhães	Arsenal	CB
88	Bukayo Saka	Arsenal	RW

A particularly notable new member of the top 10 is Spanish phenom Lamine Yamal, who had his breakout party during the Euros in 2024, becoming the youngest player to ever score a goal in the tournament at the age of 16. It should also be pointed out that Lautaro Martínez is listed as playing for fictional club Lombardia FC in-game because his real-life club, Inter Milan, did not renew its license with EA following the dissolution of the FIFA licensing deal.

EA FC 26: Top 26 Women’s OVRs

FC Barcelona Sweeps The Podium

On the women’s side, FC Barcelona is the clear front-runner in the top 26 OVRs, with Alexia Putellas, Aitana Bonmatí, and Caroline Graham Hansen holding the three top spots. In fact, Barcelona’s midfield is dominant in FC 26, with center defensive mid Patri Guijarro only a single spot out of the top five as well. Here’s how the whole top 26 women’s OVRs in EA Sports FC 26 shake out:

OVR	Name	Club	Position
91	Alexia Putellas Segura	FC Barcelona	CM
91	Aitana Bonmatí Conca	FC Barcelona	CM
90	Caroline Graham Hansen	FC Barcelona	RW
89	Alessia Russo	Arsenal	CM
89	María Francesca Caldentey Oliver	Arsenal	CM
89	Patricia Guijarro Gutiérrez	FC Barcelona	CDM
89	Khadija Shaw	Manchester City	ST
89	María Pilar León Cebrián	FC Barcelona	CB
88	Marie Katoto	OL Lyonnes	ST
88	Kadidiatou Diani	OL Lyonnes	RW
88	Sophia Wilson	Portland Thorns	ST
88	Guro Reiten	Chelsea	LM
88	Ewa Pajor	FC Barcelona	ST
88	Christiane Endler	OL Lyonnes	GK
88	Débora Cristiane de Oliveira	KC Current	CAM
88	Irene Paredes Hernández	FC Barcelona	CB
87	Chloe Kelly	Arsenal	RM
87	Lindsey Heaps	OL Lyonnes	CAM
87	Lucy Bronze	Chelsea	RB
87	Rose Lavelle	Gotham FC	CM
87	Sakina Karchaoui	Paris Saint-Germain	CM
87	Leah Williamson	Arsenal	CB
87	Beth Mead	Arsenal	RM
87	Mallory Swanson	Chicago Stars FC	LM
87	Ada Hegerberg	OL Lyonnes	ST
87	Lauren Hemp	Manchester City	LW

It pains me to see Debinha, star of my hometown Kansas City Current, technically beaten as the top NWSL player by a member of the Portland Thorns, but it’s hard to argue with Sophia Wilson’s incredible career thus far. I will simply overlook EA’s rankings and claim they’re tied because of their matching OVRs.

EA Sports FC 26 will arrive on September 26, and the developers are revealing even more player ratings in the run-up to launch. The ratings above are merely the tip of the iceberg, the top 52 of the expected 20,000 plus that will be in the full game. EA Sports FC 26 may just be the next annual release, but international soccer is always changing, and some rising stars have upset the OVR status quo.