Thibaut Courtois blasts EA over 99-rated FIFA 21 pro player card

Jacob Hale
Real Madrid thibaut courtois fifa 21

Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois has blasted EA SPORTS over his 99-rated FIFA 21 pro player card, saying that he uses his Team of the Week instead of it.

While you can never be 100% sure who you’re facing on Ultimate Team, there’s one giveaway when you’re playing a professional footballer: their turquoise-colored pro player card with a 99 rating.

Obviously, not every footballer has one, but often you’ll find them running rings around you if they’re any good at the game, and the 99 card is a daunting prospect to come up against.

Courtois, though, isn’t convinced. In fact he thinks his pro player card is considerably worse than even his base card, and refuses to use it now.

belgium national team 2018
Courtois has played football at the very highest level, but thinks the virtual sport could do with some improvement.

While racing together in virtual F1, La Liga’s most expensive goalkeeper was asked about his FIFA 21 team by FIFA streamer Peter ‘Pieface’ Shepherd, who asked if he uses himself in goal.

Courtois confirmed that he does, but uses his Team of the Week card instead of his unique, EA-issued 99 card.

Confirming that his TOTW card is better than the 99, the Belgian shot stopper said that “the 99 card is sh*t. Instead of making it better, they just put 99 but make it, like, 59.”

Through Pieface’s laughter — and that of the stream — Courtois adds that “it doesn’t seem great,” but he does have the safety of Real Madrid teammate Raphael Varane in front of him at CB.

Courtois isn’t the first player to hit out at EA over FIFA matters. When ratings were announced at the start of the season, Lukaku took serious issue with his, while more recently players such as Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Gareth Bale have complained about using their likeness without the rights to.

While we wouldn’t say no to a 99-rated pro player card, this does dampen the allure of them just a little.

Related Topics

About The Author

Jacob is Dexerto’s UK Editor and Call of Duty esports specialist. With a BA (Hons) in English Literature and Creative Writing, he previously worked as an Editor at Ginx TV. Jacob was nominated for Journalist of the Year at the 2023 Esports Awards. Contact: jacob.hale@dexerto.com.