30 in 30: Icon SBCs

30 in 30 is a series of 30 investing and trading tips, 1 posted each day over the course of September leading up to the FIFA 21 release in October. Below is a list of the tips we have seen already.

  1. TOTW Investing
  2. OOP TOTW Golds
  3. SBC Gems
  4. Perfect Positions
  5. Frequent Acronyms
  6. EA Tax
  7. ROI Potential
  8. MM Investing
  9. High Traffic Times
  10. Promo Investing
  11. Icons and WL Rewards
  12. Quick Sell Values
  13. Live Cards
  14. Two Birds One Stone
  15. Chief’s Buy Price
  16. Listing for Lazies
  17. New Filters
  18. UCL MM
  19. Price Ranges
  20. FUTBIN Indexes
  21. Best of CBP
  22. Opportunity Cost
  23. FIFA 21 Fodder FC
  24. Investment Squads
  25. Dollar-Cost Averaging
  26. Icon SBCs

Icon SBCs were introduced in FIFA 18 (see FIFA 18 challenges here and FIFA 19 challenges here). These were immensely popular among FUT players, and it was much to their dismay that EA removed them in FIFA 20.

Good news for FIFA 21, though – Icon SBCs are BACK. In yesterday’s Pitch Notes, EA detailed some of their plans for the challenges this year:

  • The first ICON SBCs will be introduced from late November onwards.
  • ICON SBCs will be available long term, but not permanently.
  • Specific versions of ICONs will only become eligible for SBC release after they’ve been released in packs for a period of time.
  • After an ICON SBC expires, it may be re-released at a later date. The challenge requirements and rewards may also be updated.
  • ICONs may be used as requirements in SBCs

In terms of impact, there are two main ways that the rebirth of Icon SBCs will effect the FUT market:

1. Icons will have increased value. 

“Icons may be used as requirements in SBCs”. The price of Icon Fodder will be substantially higher in FIFA 21. Take the example of base 86 Peter Schmeichel.

FIFA 18 Price on December 1st – 445k (PS4)
FIFA 19 Price on December 1st – 815k (PS4)
FIFA 20 Price on December 1st – 136k (PS4)

These price differences here are directly correlated to Icon SBCs (and Icon Swaps).

2. Informs will have increased value.

In addition to Icon requirements, these challenges will also likely have inform requirements. While TOTW investments weren’t as successful in FIFA 20, I expect the return of Icon SBCs to help their case in FIFA 21.

As the article mentions, the first Icon SBCs will be released in late November. There won’t be anything to invest for them in October, but refer back to the website in November for the best looks.

Cheers,
Chief