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As suggested by leakers on Twitter, EA Sports have released the much anticipated World Cup Icon Carles Puyol SBC in FIFA 23 Ultimate Team. The Spanish legend has received an impressive upgrade over his mid-version with a boost to his pace.
World Cup Icon cards have been added to the Ultimate Team to celebrate the legendary careers of retired footballers who had impressive showings in the World Cup, and very few can claim to have as illustrious a career as Carles Puyol. He led his nation to victory in three consecutive international tournaments, winning the Euros in 2008 and 2012, as well as the World Cup in 2010.
Carles Puyol's fabled international career has been commemorated with an SBC in FIFA 23 Ultimate Team
Puyol is undoubtedly in the running to be considered one of the greatest defenders of all time. The former FC Barcelona captain has won it all at both international and club levels, and with the release of his World Cup Icon card, he finally has a usable version in FIFA 23.
With the meta of the game shifting to favor more pace-oriented styles of play, the previous versions of Puyol were somewhat ineffective in-game. However, his World Cup version has 75 pace, which makes him a viable center-back option.
What does the card look like in-game?
Similar to the other World Cup Icons released in FUT, this card has a better rating than his mid version but is still inferior to the prime version. The 91-rated card possesses the following attributes in six key aspects:
- Pace: 75
- Dribbling: 58
- Shooting: 45
- Defending: 93
- Passing: 67
- Physicality: 91
Based on these stats, it is evident that the card is a defensive beast, but severely limited in all other aspects of the game.
How to complete the Carles Puyol World Cup Icon SBC in FIFA 23?
This Icon SBC requires five segments to complete in-game, with each segment offering individual pack rewards. Below are the specific requirements of the respective segments:
Born Legend
- Rare players: Exactly 11
- Player Quality: Exactly Bronze
Rising Star
- Rare players: Exactly 11
- Player Quality: Exactly Silver
El Tiburon
- Players from FC Barcelona: Minimum one
- Team of the Week or FUT Champions players: Minimum one
- Team Rating: Minimum 83
National Idol
- Spain players: Minimum one
- Team of the Week or FUT champions players: Minimum one
- Team Rating: Minimum 84
League Legend
- Players from La Liga Santander: Minimum one
- Team Rating: Minimum 86
Is it worth completing the SBC in FIFA 23 Ultimate Team?
The expected cost of the entire SBC is estimated to be around 170,000 FUT coins. This is primarily due to the inflated price of fodder cards in the FIFA 23 transfer market, and FUT veterans can bring the price down by using untradeable cards present in their club.
The card itself is rather impressive. This is the first version of Carles Puyol that could be considered viable in the latest meta of FIFA 23 and is worth completing for Barca fans, as well as those looking for a top-tier Icon defender.
