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FIFA 23 is now out and the Ones To Watch promo is on the way today. As always, we’ve got a countdown for you – giving the latest news, predictions and more about Ones to Watch.
We’ve got you covered with its release date, what time FIFA 23 Ones to Watch it’s expected to launch and any common frequently asked questions.
We break down exactly what you can expect, along with players arriving to the promo and our take on how they’ll net out this season.
Both the FIFA 23 Ultimate Edition and Standard Edition are now available. For those uncertain about the game, a 10-HOUR trial is available on EA Play. Remember, the Ultimate Edition does boast plenty of decent rewards for serious Ultimate Team players, and may still be worth picking up.
NOW READ: These are the best strikers on FIFA 23
If you enjoy Ultimate Team, you’re wondering when the first promo of FIFA 23 is, right? Well, it’s expected to be Ones To Watch – based off last year’s Ultimate Team start.
FIFA 23 Ones To Watch Promo
As mentioned above, the first promo of FIFA 23 is the Ones To Watch promo. This has been the starter promo for FIFA for a few years now.
One to Watch cards are high risk, high reward players featuring players that have recently joined a new club. Ones to Watch focus on the biggest signings of the transfer window. They are dynamic cards that have the potential to upgrade throughout the season based on their performance.
The typically update when they receive a performance-based special item, such as Man of the Match or a spot in Team of the Week.
NOW READ: These are the best strikers on FIFA 23
They are also capable of getting ‘Wins to Watch’ upgrades – a one-time boost to their stats, if they’re part of a team that wins three matches out of their next eight domestic league games starting (from Friday 30th September).
FIFA 23 Nations to Watch
With the World Cup approaching , there could be even further incentive to obtain these promotional cards.
Through the ‘Nations to Watch’ programme, Ones to Watch items will be eligible for another one-off upgrade if their national team wins a game at the FIFA World Cup 2022. This is regardless of whether the player is on the pitch – it’s directly related to team performance.
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FIFA 23 Ones To Watch Release Date
The expected release date for Ones to Watch is Friday, September 30th. This aligns with FIFA 23’s launch date, which is set to be September 30 at midnight BST. It’s almost treated as an inaugural launch promo for players to dive straight into!
FIFA 23 Ones To Watch Release Time Prediction- when does it go live?
At the time of writing this – this was our predictions was to when the ones to watch promo could look to go live.
In the past, EA launched this promo around 6PM GMT / 1PM ET.
In fact, most FIFA promos that EA release usually occur at 6PM, so we can safely predict that FIFA 23’s Ones To Watch promo can expect to go live at 6PM GMT / 1PM ET on Friday September 30.
Who has been announced for Ones To Watch?
As we know, the players that were announced in the summer for the FIFA 23 OTW promo were:
- Erling Haaland (Manchester City) – already one of the standout strikers in the game, and in line for a plethora of updates.
- Raheem Sterling (Chelsea) – speedy, agile and quick, Sterling will be sure to have a stellar season
- Darwin Nunez (Liverpool) – has been making headlines for all the right reasons since moving to Liverpool
- Richarlison (Tottenham Hotspur) – this exciting Brazilian forward has a bright future at Spurs, and will no doubt see his base card upgraded throughout the season
Alongside these players however, EA have began to roll out more players for the promo including:
- Renato Sanches (PSG)
- Tchouameni (Real Madrid)
- Rudiger (Real Madrid)
- Nico Schlotterbeck (Borussia Dortmund)
- Steven Bergwijn (PSV)
- Tyler Adams (Leeds United)
It’s expected that fans will have a chance to secure one of these ones to watch cards, for FREE. However it comes with a cost, as you’ll need to purchase the FIFA Ultimate Edition to get access to one of these.
Remember, if your OTW player goes on loan / transfer during a season, they keep the latest upgrade until they get another upgrade at their new club, or receive a Nations to Watch upgrade.
FIFA 23 OTW Revealed
As predicted, EA have revealed the OTW promo at 6PM BST / 1PM ET and we’ve got a plethora of cards to unravel here!
With the majority of players expected from EA’s reveal, the full lineup is here!
See below for a recap:
- ST Robert Lewandowski – 91
- LM 89 Sadio Mane – 89
- ST Erling Haaland – 88
- CB Antonio Rudiger – 87
- CF Paolo Dybala – 86
- ST Gabriel Jesus – 83
- CM Tchouameni – 82
- ST Darwin Nunez – 82
- RW Antony – 82
- CB Schlotterbeck – 82
- CM Tolisso – 81
- CDM Adams – 76
FIFA 23 Ones To Watch Upgrades Explained
Ones To Watch is a really unique promo which is included in FIFA – however is even more exciting with a special World Cup edition increase: Nations To Watch.
Wins To Watch
This one is pretty straight forward – if the player’s team wins the next three games out of eight, he will receive a one-time upgrade which could see players’ ratings rise by between 1 to 2!
Nations To Watch
This is a new upgrade which has been brought into FIFA 23 specifically for the game in celebration with the world cup.
An example for this would be if Uruguay win one match at the World Cup this year, Darwin Nunez would receive a one time upgrade – extending his ratings even further!
FIFA 23 Ones to Watch predictions
Again, mentioned briefly above – these were our initial predictions in the anticipation of the OTW promo launch, these are speculative and not confirmed until the promo has released.
There are a number of high-profile players who switched club in the transfer window. Some of the highest profile signings include Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang leaving Arsenal for Chelsea.
Paul Pogba has moved to Juventus, while Robert Lewandowski has upped sticks and moved to Barcelona after a stunning few seasons at Bayern Munich.
Here are other players we are expecting to see FIFA 23 OTW cards for. All of these will likely see their OTW card increase heavily during the season. We’ve put a likelihood of that next to each player, based on what we’ve seen so far.
- Sadio Mane (Bayern Munich) – has struggled since his move from Liverpool. Unless he finds form, he could well be line for a stale opening to FIFA 23
- Angel Di Maria (Juventus) – a decent start since his move, but his club will be wanting more
- Paolo Dybala (AS Roma) – 4 goals and two assists this season means Dybala hasn’t quite found the form that made him so effective at Juve – but we all know he’s capable of magic
- Matthijs de Ligt (Bayern Munich) – one goal to his name a string of solid performances
- Antonio Rudiger (Real Madrid) – strong start at Real Madrid for the defender who is in line for a big season
- Antony (Manchester United) – a rising star at Old Trafford who has everything he needs to be the best. In line for a huge season.
- Romelu Lukaku (Inter Milan) – at 29 years old, still at the peak of his game, and offers Intel strength and speed up front
- Casemiro (Manchester United) – hints of class from the Brazilian hint at what’s to come this season
- Raphinha (Barcelona) – huge talent that will almost certainly will see the Brazilian getting a slew of upgrades this season
- Gabriel Jesus (Arsenal) – still only 25 but feels as though he has been around forever. Jesus is loving life at Arsenal and adds a ton of pace to the London outfit. Much more to come from Jesus this season after a strong start.
The player’s position on their Ones To Watch item will not change – regardless of whether they change position during the season.
If a player is no longer in the squad of the club their item is released for and do not join a new club, they won’t be able to get any further upgrades.
FIFA 23 OTW Feature Player Prediction
Hinted also by EA is few cards that will appear on the market by 6PM today – and we have a good guess as to who the premier player could be!
EA has hinted that a 91 rated Polish player will be dropping into packs and the market at 6PM.
With EA mentioning that OTW cards will contain players coming into new clubs it’s highly expected that this card is to be Robert Lewandowski – and what a card that would be!
It’ll be certainly interesting to see what these cards turn out to become when EA launch them at 6PM GMT today!
Since writing this – it seems that it’s true! Robert Lewandowski has received a whopping 91 rated card to go alongside his base rare, a nice upgrade!
FIFA 23 OTW card design
The FIFA 23 OTW cards are, as you’d expect, pretty striking to look at – and stick with the same colour scheme as last year.
They have a purple background with tons of vibrant hues helping to set them off. In our view, they are far stronger than FIFA 22’s OTW designs, which we have captured below, courtesy of the EA website, which lack depth in comparison.
More subtle changes, for example a slightly more gold border than last year’s version, help frame the cards better, while the design has shifted slightly across to ensure the overall rating isn’t straining to look at.
FIFA 23 OTW card upgrades – predictions
The majority of players above will all likely see ratings changes, but there are some players who are almost 100 per cent guaranteed upgrades in our view, based on current performance for their clubs. These are:
- Erling Haaland (Manchester City)
- Darwin Nunez (Liverpool)
- Gabriel Jesus (Arsenal) – if he is named in OTW
- Antonio Rudiger (Real Madrid) – if he is named in OTW
FIFA 23 OTW market crash
There are strong rumours that a FUT 23 market crash could well be on the way once OTW drops.
A market crash happens when supply outweighs demand. New inform releases and promotions encourage gamers to buy more packs, flooding the market with players – which means prices drop.
The FIFA 23 market is already seen a number of cards go down in price – meaning there are more people trying to sell their cards than buy cards. While this is not a sign of a crash for certain, it’s an indicator the market is uncertain about what can happen.
READ MORE: FUT Market Crash: What To Expect
Can we expect a FIFA 23 OTW 2?
In the past, EA have released additional Ones To Watch cards alongside the initial launch promo in past Ultimate Team seasons – however for now, it’s not expected that EA will continue with them.
As expected per Tom Henderson, the next promo look to launch on FIFA 23 is ‘road to the knockouts’ which are UEFA Champions League style cards, targeting players in the competition currently.
What else could we expect from the OTW launch?
It’s also expected, similar to last year’s FIFA that a plethora of SBCs (squad building challenges) will be released.
The incentive could be a promo card – similarly to Angel Di Maria’s card which is a SBC currently in the market to grab! Or a plethora of packs to obtain, either way… more goodies!
FIFA 23 Ones To Watch FAQ
When does FIFA 23 Ones To Watch go live?
We can safely predict that FIFA 23’s Ones To Watch promo can look to be live by 6PM GMT / 1PM ET this Friday.
What is FIFA 23 Ones To Watch Release Date?
The expected release date for Ones to Watch is Friday, September 30th. This is in align with the FIFA 23’s launch date this Friday which is expected to go live at midnight.
What is OTW in FIFA?
OTW stands for Ones to Watch. Ones to Watch focus on the biggest signings of the transfer window. They are dynamic cards that have the potential to upgrade throughout the season based on their performance.
Will OTW upgrade?
Whether or not a OTW card in FIFA 23 upgrades depends on induvial performance for their clubs. However this year, as there is a World Cup, a ‘Nations to Watch’ promo will give all OTW players who feature in those national teams a chance of a boost, irrespective of their individual performance. Rather, it’ll be based on their team winning a match at the competition.
