EA Sports FC 26 cover star leaks and they've been on before
As we hit the summer months, the announcement of the next EA Sports FC game is guaranteed to be just around the corner.
The past few entries, including last year's EA Sports FC 25, were all officially revealed in July, ahead of a September launch. The inevitable EA Sports FC 26 is expected to follow suit and, as is also tradition, leaks have outed several details already.
This includes who will be gracing the cover of EA Sports FC 26 and according to several leakers, it's set to be a repeat of last year.
According to leaker LeanDesign, who leaked last year's cover star, England and Real Madrid player Jude Bellingham will once again be splashed on the cover for EA Sports FC 26.
Repeat cover stars aren't unusual for the series. Lionel Messi has appeared on four FIFA covers, from FIFA 13 through 16, while Cristiano Ronaldo had a back-to-back billing on FIFA 18 and FIFA 19.
The footballer who has featured on the cover the most is Wayne Rooney, who notched up seven games from FIFA 06 until FIFA 12.
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In other leaks, reliable insider Fut Sheriff has revealed the next batch of stars set to appear as Icons in Ultimate Team for EA Sports FC 26. You can check out the full list below, but one of them, Sweden's Zlatan Ibrahimović, is a somewhat surprising addition. More Trending
In 2020, Ibrahimović criticised EA for allegedly using his name and likeness in the game without his permission. 'Who gave FIFA EA Sport permission to use my name and face? @FIFPro? I'm not aware to be a member of Fifpro and if I am I was put there without any real knowledge through some weird manouver [sic],' he tweeted at the time.
EA responded with a statement which pinned the blame on FIFPro, the organisation which represents professional footballers. 'This is between FIFPro, the players within their association and their representatives,' an EA spokesperson told Forbes.
Ibrahimović disputed this claim in subsequent tweets, but his presence as an Icon in EA Sports FC 26 suggests the dispute has been settled.
Zlatan Ibrahimović – Sweden
Andrés Iniesta – Spain
Toni Kroos – Germany
Marcelo – Brazil
Giorgio Chiellini – Italy
Alex Morgan – USA
Francesco Totti – Italy
Oliver Kahn – Germany
Sara Thunebro – Sweden
Cha Bum-kun – South Korea
Steffi Jones – Germany
Sissi – Brazil
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