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FC 26 early access release date: What time does early access start and what's in the Ultimate Edition?

FC Points aplenty.

Ronaldo Nazario dribbling past Giorgio Chiellini in FC 26.

EA Sports

Published: Monday, 15 September 2025 at 12:00 pm

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If you're itching to jump in on the FC 26 early access and want to know when it starts, you've come to the right place.

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As with previous years, the Ultimate Edition of FC 26 comes with an earlier release date as well as a slew of boons to help you get your Ultimate Team squad up and running.

So, if you're wondering when the FC 26 early access starts and what's included in the Ultimate Edition, read on for everything you need to know.

When is the FC 26 early access release date?

The FC 26 early access release date is 19th September 2025 for players that purchase the Ultimate Edition.

This is a full week before the Standard Edition launches for everyone on 26th September.

It's worth bearing in mind that all the game modes including Ultimate Team and Clubs will be available to you right from the start, so you'll get a full week of time to build your squads up before everyone else gets started.

That will be made even easier once you consider some of the bonuses you'll get, more about which you can learn below.

FC 26 early access UK start time

Console players who purchase the Ultimate Edition can start playing the FC 26 early access from midnight local time on 19th September 2025.

PC players who purchase the Ultimate Edition can start playing the FC 26 early access from 1pm BST on 18th September, much earlier for some parts of the world.

What's included in the FC 26 Ultimate Edition?

First things first, there are some limited-time bonuses that you can only get by pre-ordering the Ultimate Edition before the full release on 26th September. These are:

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As well as these there lovely rewards spread across FC 25 and FC 26, there are some rewards that you'll get with the Ultimate Edition no matter when you purchase it. Here's the full list:

While all of these are nice perks to have, the ones that most people will undoubtedly be drawn to are the free Icon and the whopping 6,000 FC Points, worth around £45 in real terms.

That should keep you busy until FM26 comes out later this year, eh?

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Authors

Black and white cut-out portrait headshot of Alex Raisbeck, smiling against a lime green background.

Alex RaisbeckGaming writer

Alex Raisbeck is a Gaming Writer at Radio Times, covering everything from AAA giants to indie gems. Alex has written for VideoGamer, GamesRadar+, PC Gamer, PCGamesN and more.

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