Next Gen
The PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S versions of FIFA 21 offered responsive haptic feedback, faster load times, an improved lighting system to make the game look more realistic, spatialised audio for a more immersive stadium experience and off-ball humanisation where players look and feel more like their real-life counterparts.
These changes should return for FIFA 22, with other game improvements set to be announced at EA Play Live on July 22.
Anthem jackets have been added for FIFA 22, improving the pre-game ambience and making the game feel more like its real-life counterpart.
Career Mode improvements
Career Mode is one of the main parts of the game which gamers want to see updated.
FIFA 21 added the 'Quick Sim' option where you could jump in and out of matches, while the Active Training System made player development much more dynamic.
Improved AI and transfer options also made the game more lifelike, but there are still demands for further improvements in FIFA 22.
Fans have speculated about the addition of an Online Career Mode, but there has been no official confirmation of this yet.
Gameplay
Each year, EA Sports adds new gameplay improvements on top of the graphic changes.
Agile Dribbling, Positioning Personality and Creative Runs were added last year, on top of previous improvements in defending, passing and dribbling.
These will probably be built on for FIFA 22 with other gameplay changes added.
It is expected that the expected goals (xG) stat will be added to player stats pages and graphics, while heat maps will also be improved in the full-time screens.
Tactics are set to get an overhaul, moving away from the 1-10 sliders to give users greater control over player positions and attacking build-ups.
Player switching is set to be improved, giving more variety in the choice of which defending player to switch to.
New Icons
There were over 100 icons in the last edition of FIFA and more should be added to FIFA 22.
A good indicator of which icons that will be added is the list of legendary players from FIFA Online.
The following players have recently been added to FIFA Online 4 and therefore could be added to FIFA 22:
Gabriel Batistuta
Robin van Persie
Lucio
Park Ji-Sung
Jaap Stam
Cha Bum-kun
Diego Forlan
Wesley Sneidjer
Iker Casillas
Ultimate Team
The last few months of FIFA 21 Ultimate Team saw the addition of preview packs which allowed gamers to see the contents of packs before buying them on the store.
This is thought to take away the gambling aspect of Ultimate Team and make Store purchases more like downloadable in-game purchases than a game of chance, and thus avoid gambling legislation in certain countries.
As a result, there is a good chance these preview packs will be kept as a gameplay element in FIFA 22 Ultimate Team.
Volta
FIFA's street football mode Volta has had continual updates such as players, clothing and items during the year and these will continue in FIFA 22.
New players, stadiums, locations and merchandise will be added for FIFA 22 as well as a new story mode.
Will VAR be in FIFA 21?
The introduction of the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) is the biggest change to football in the modern era, with contentious decisions and moments now up for review.
Despite first being rolled out in 2017, VAR was not feature of FIFA 21, and this is likely to continue with FIFA 22.
Official leagues & clubs
Since FIFA 20 Juventus are known as Piemonte Calcio, and EA Sports has lost more licenses to Pro Evolution Soccer in recent years.
PES recently acquired the license to Serie A side Atalanta, meaning EA Sports will not be able to use their proper name for the next three years, starting with FIFA 22.
Napoli and Roma have also signed exclusive deals with PES, which will surely disappoint fans of these Italian clubs.
Who is on the cover of FIFA 22?
Kylian Mbappe was the global cover star of FIFA 21 and could return again for FIFA 22.
The France and Paris Saint-Germain forward said it was "a dream come true" to feature on the cover of the game.
In previous years, Eden Hazard, Virgil van Dijk, Cristiano Ronaldo, Neymar, Kevin De Bruyne and Paulo Dybala have also appeared on the game cover.
Konami's deal with Juventus means Ronaldo will not return to the cover of FIFA for the foreseeable future.
Mbappe is the cover star for FIFA Online 4 so this could be a good indicator that he will return as the cover star for FIFA 22.
Who are the FIFA 22 top rated players?
Lionel Messi is likely to be the highest-rated player in FIFA 22 again as he is currently the only 93-rated player in the live database.
Two players currently have a 92 rating: Cristiano Ronaldo and Robert Lewandowski.
Jan Oblak, Kevin De Bruyne and Neymar are all rated 91 overall, while Kylian Mbappe has the highest potential of any player in the game at the moment with a current rating of 90 and a potential rating of 95.