FIFA 23 Road to the Knockouts: Upgrades explained & featured players

Nathan Warby
FIFA 23 Road to the Knockouts

Road to the Knockouts is the second FIFA 23 promo following the successful Ones to Watch. Here’s everything you need to know about FIFA 23 Road to the Knockouts, including how the card upgrades will work.

FIFA 23 Ultimate Team is in full swing, and the market is already full of special cards to help players craft their dream squad.

The Team of the Week is dropping regularly, while Ones to Watch marked the first major promo of the year, offering fans no shortage of options in every position. But the next FUT event is never too far away, and attention has turned to Road to the Knockouts.

As European competition group stage action continues, FIFA 23 Road to the Knockouts is next up on the calendar, so here’s everything you need to know about the promo.

FIFA 23 Road to the Knockouts start date

The FIFA 23 Road to the Knockouts promo started on Friday, October 7. The new RTTK cards replaced Ones to Watch cards in packs. It hasn’t been confirmed how long RTTK cards will be live this time around. If EA opt for a two-week-long promo, fans can expect a second team of players to land on Friday, October 14.

There will also be plenty of SBCs and objectives to complete over the course of the event, so be sure to check back every day to stay on top of the latest releases.

FIFA 23 Road to the Knockouts explained

RTTK loading screen FIFA 23

Road to the Knockouts is a concept first introduced in FIFA 22, which sees a group of special cards receive stat boosts based on how their real-life counterpart performs in the European group stages.

EA have stuck to the same formula as last season, each card has two opportunities to receive an upgrade if their club meets certain criteria during the Champions League, Europa League, or Europa Conference League campaign.

They will receive a rating increase if their club:

  • Qualifies for the knockout stages
  • Wins two out of the final three group stage matches

It’s also worth noting that these upgrades are handed out purely on the club’s performances, so even if the player depicted on the card doesn’t kick a ball, they will still be entitled to a boost.

Make sure to use our RTTK upgrade tracker to find out which players are due for an upgrade.

FIFA 23 Road to the Final featured players

Unlike other FIFA 23 promos, RTTK doesn’t feature a theme that connects all of the featured players, other than their clubs playing European football. However, EA are enticing FUT fans with some big names.

Here are all of the featured players involved in the Ultimate Team RTTK promo:

  • Niklas Sule – CB – Borussia Dortmund
  • Thomas Lemar – CM – Atletico Madrid
  • Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang – ST – Chelsea
  • Lionel Messi – RW – PSG
  • Phil Foden – LW – Manchester City
  • Federico Valverde – CM – Real Madrid
  • Raphinha – RW – Barcelona
  • Andre-Franck Zambo Anguissa – CDM – Napoli
  • Thomas Muller – CAM – Bayern Munich
  • Jonathan Ikone – RW – Fiorentina
  • Gerard Moreno – ST – Villarreal
  • Moses Simon – LM – Nantes
  • Ibrahima Konate – CB – Liverpool
  • Martin Odegaard – CAM – Arsenal
  • Martin Terrier – LW – Stade Rennais
  • Bremer – CB – Juventus
  • Patrik Schick – ST – Bayer Leverkusen
  • Lucas Paqueta – CAM – West Ham
  • Aaron Wan-Bissaka – RB – Manchester United
  • Ismael Bennacer – CDM – A.C. Milan (SBC)
  • Dejan Kulusevski – RW – Tottenham (SBC)
  • Robin Gosens – LWB – Inter Milan (Objective)

Paqueta, Wan-Bissaka, Schick, and Bremer arrived through a mini-release that EA delivered on Sunday, October 9. Another RTTK SBC is expected to hit FIFA 23 before the start of the rumored Rulebreakers promo on Friday, October 14.


For more on FIFA 23, check out our OTW upgrade tracker and our predictions for the Ultimate Team TOTW 4.

Image credits: EA SPORTS

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About The Author

Nathan is a Senior Writer for CharlieIntel and Dexerto, primarily covering FIFA and Call of Duty, as well as general gaming news and guides. After leaving university with a degree in Sports Studies and a master's degree in Magazine Journalism, he took on a role as a local news reporter before moving into games media. You can contact Nathan by email at [email protected].