EA has set out how The Grounds, the open-world mode headlining EA Sports FC 27, will work, in details given to Dexerto at a preview event. The mode is an extension of Clubs: after creating a Pro, players are dropped into a city of three districts shared with 99 others, which can be freely explored.
The character a player controls in the open world is the same one who signs for a friend's team in Clubs, making The Grounds the social layer around that mode rather than a separate mode of its own. Dexerto reports it is the largest addition to this year's entry in the series.
Minigames and mentors
Pitches scattered across the map host minigames that earn XP for a player's Pro, and come in a range of sizes and layouts. Some resemble the street football of FIFA Street or Volta, with match sizes running from 1v1 to 3v3, alongside 4v4 Rush games played with an AI goalkeeper.
Others are further from conventional soccer. Dexerto describes a dodgeball-style mode in which players are eliminated by being hit with a ball, popping three balloons that represent lives, with a dedicated dodge button, invincibility power-ups and trip hazards such as tires. Another minigame changes the scoring condition every minute — counting only shots that have bounced off a wall, for instance — while another is described as basketball played with the feet.
Four Mentors are placed around the world: Kylian Mbappe, Paulo Dybala, Chloe Kelly, and Alex Hunter, the player character from The Journey. Each carries its own set of objectives covering a different area of the game, and conversations offer dialogue options, though Dexerto notes the branching is limited in scope.
Monetization
The reveal drew concern that the mode would be built to sell microtransactions, with comparisons drawn to a similar feature in the NBA series and its paid cosmetics. Producer Karthik Venkateshan told Dexerto that progression was designed around time played instead.
Our goal, very intentionally, has been to provide players with rewards based on how much time they’re spending and how much power they’re earning, and to do all of that without needing to worry about spend or microtransactions. That has been a cornerstone of this mode.
Venkateshan confirmed that paid options will exist in the mode, saying there are "100%" microtransactions or spend opportunities, but described them as positioned around catching up — aimed at players returning after a break who need to close a levelling gap rather than at buying an advantage.
Players get their first access to The Grounds, along with the year's changes to Ultimate Team and Career Mode, when the EA FC 27 closed beta opens on August 5.
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