Lionel Messi took a step back with his rating in FC 26 as EA Sports unveiled the top players across MLS.
The new ratings have been trickling out ahead of the game’s scheduled release on Sept. 26, and the biggest superstars in several leagues around the world were unveiled on both the men’s and women’s sides.
For Inter Miami’s Messi, though, there was no longer a card among the world’s best. Instead, keeping a slim lead as the best in MLS, only slightly ahead of new LAFC signing Son Heung-min, and Inter Miami teammate Rodrigo De Paul.
The step down from his 88 rating in EA FC 25 could be expected, with the 38-year-old struggling to bring team success to Miami, and crashing out of the 2024 MLS Cup Playoffs.
Still, he has immense quality and had 19 MLS goals in as many games when the rating came out midway through the 2025 MLS season.






