Article 3 – Kicking Off

Here it is then the illusive third arcticle in the PROSPECTIVE series. Thanks to everyone who’s read the previous two issues, links to these can be found at the bottom of this article and of course for your patience.

I’ve chosen to write this article in a slightly different format to the editions before, yet I still hope it offers some insightful information be it to those already involved with clubs or looking to start.

The Clubs Environment

When I first took the step on FIFA 10 to scroll down the menu to the title ‘Pro Clubs’ with my finger over the ‘A’ button I really didn’t know what to expect at all, and to be honest I was left let down but not totally disheartened by my experience. Why? ‘Pro Club Championship’ that’s why! Eight wannabe strikers with the odd player wanting to play the game the right way, no balance, no flow, no passing – nothing.

So what did I do? I headed over to the EA FIFA Forums placed a post about being a keen new player looking for a club and after some, shall we say enlightening team experiences settled with a team breaking into the top 50 in the world.

FIFA clubs for me is the ultimate football gaming experience and offers all the highs, lows and team morale of its real life counterpart, so don’t be put off by the ‘Pro Club Championship’ experience. Thankfully we now have some fantastic resources to encourage players into this world of virtual sports stardom (maybe a bit of an exaggeration there).

FVPA

If your new to the team experience then you can’t go far wrong with fvpa.co.uk. This website is ran by FIFA fanatics with very close ties to the FIFA community and are often in contact with feedback for the series to EA. They offer everything from recruitment, leagues, tournaments and international squads in one easily to navigate place. The atmosphere is friendly, organised and grabbing the attention of the world rankings with many of the top 100 teams starting to feature on the sites forums.

EA Official Forum

Although not as well laid out as it’s FIFA 10 incarnation, X360/PS3 FIFA 11 Clubs
is still a very active site for finding a club to play for and promoting your playing abilities.

A special mention to sweetpatch.tv a fountain of endless FIFA articles, videos, blogs, competitions etc. If you’re ever in need of fresh tips or information along with ultimatefifa.com this is the place to go.

Highlights

Thanks to these websites my play and enjoyment has only increased. In recent months I’ve made the IFVPA England squad for friendlies and I’m hoping to do enough to be included in the 12 Nations Cup Tournament later in the year. To not only play with the best players in the country but also against some of the best players in the world is something I never thought I’d see in FIFA Clubs but it’s a testament to how dedicated these resources are by providing these opportunities.

Only you know why you play clubs and whatever that may be I hope you find the same enjoyment I have over the last couple of years, it just takes one post on a forum somewhere to get you started.

Always Learning

Thanks again for reading this closing article of the PROSPECTIVE series. I’m busy working on something new for the site and will be back soon so keep an eye out if you’ve enjoyed this mini taster.

Not only am I still learning when it comes to writing articles such as this but also while playing FIFA so to close this series I’d like to offer two final tips.

Did you know that by holding ‘RB’ during a match your player will automatically move to the ideal position on the pitch for his role? Handy when on the defensive, and finally if your ratings seem quite low in games check your ‘Kick Off’ match time if it’s greater than 6 minutes that could be your reason. My ratings were always 8.0+ but then they dipped to 6.0+ and it was down to having a 15 minute match time in these settings, changing it back seems to of fixed the problem.

Good luck on the pitch and feel free to leave any comments and questions.

Gamertag – Clark I HD

Article 1 – The Debut
Article 2 – Know Your Role