At some point, it is time to hang up the soccer shoes. We show you 5 soccer stars who have ended their careers this summer or for other reasons will not receive new cards in EA FC 25.
Every year, male and female soccer players retire and can look back on successful years. Here, we look at four well-known players who ended their careers this summer and one who did not do so voluntarily.
One or the other of these players should definitely receive an Icon or Hero card in FC in the future. However, it would be a bit early to see them in FC 25 and, based on past experiences, quite unlikely.
All information about FC 25 and its innovations can be found here: EA FC 25: All information on release, price, and innovations
Toni Kroos
Toni Kroos will likely be remembered in soccer history as one of the best players of all time. And rightfully so. His numerous titles speak volumes. Over the past 10 years, he played for Real Madrid and won the Champions League five times there (most recently in 2024).
Now, the world champion ended his illustrious career at the age of 34 after the home Euros, as Kroos was still in world-class form on the field. Surely, we will see an Icon card for Toni Kroos sooner or later.
After announcing his retirement, Kroos received an incredibly strong End-of-an-Era card in FC 24, which everyone seemed to have in their Ultimate Team.
Thiago
Thiago Alcantara is likely best known for his time at Bayern. There, the Spaniard spent 7 extremely successful years, winning the German championship multiple times, twice the DFB-Pokal, and the Champions League. He then moved to Jürgen Klopp’s Liverpool but could never really regain his former strength due to numerous injuries.
Now, the midfielder has ended his career, and such a strong Flashback card of Thiago, as in FC 24, will probably not be available in the future.
Pepe
The Portuguese center-back legend was 41 years old when he played in the European Championship this summer. He showed excellent performances and proved once again why he could have such a long and successful career.
Pepe likely had his best time at Real Madrid, where he played 229 games. Afterwards, the durable player spent one season at Besiktas Istanbul and then transferred to FC Porto at the age of 36, an age at which other players have already ended their careers.
There, Pepe remained for 5 years and played proudly 133 times. In the meantime, he announced his retirement and will therefore not be seen in FC 25 for now. In FC 24, you could still play him with a strong 91-rated TOTS Moments card.
Leonardo Bonucci
With Bonucci, another legendary center-back has also ended his active career after the 2023/24 season. The Italian played an incredible 502 games for Juventus Turin and was also with well-known clubs like AC Milan, Fenerbahce Istanbul, or Union Berlin, although his time there was not particularly successful.
In FC 24, he received a particularly strong End-of-an-Era card as a tribute to his long career with a 96 rating.
Paul Pogba
The former world star Paul Pogba (31) is the only player on this list who has not actively declared his career to be over. Instead, the French soccer star was banned from professional sports for 4 years due to doping (via kicker). Whether he will return afterward is questionable.
Previously, Pogba always had strong cards and particularly high-end special cards. That is now first a thing of the past, and Pogba’s last card remains the 82-rated Gold card in EA FC 24 for now.
The midfielder had particularly successful careers at Juventus Turin and Manchester United.
If you want to know which cards will definitely be included in FC 25 and, according to our predictions, could even be among the strongest in the game, then check this out: EA FC 25 Ratings: Our predictions for the 10 best players in Ultimate Team
