EA FC 26 Gareth Bale Icon SBC costs, requirements, and value

Gareth Bale’s Base Icon is one of the headline Squad Building Challenges in EA FC 26 Ultimate Team. The 88-rated Icon winger brings elite pace and strong all-round attacking stats, but he is locked behind one of the most demanding SBC structures in the game.

Gareth Bale Base Icon item overview

The Bale Icon on offer is the 88-rated base version. He is listed as a right winger (RW) with alternate positions at striker (ST) and left wing (LW). His key face stats are:

In the current meta, that combination of 95 pace with high shooting and dribbling makes Bale a top-tier wide forward who can also play centrally as a goal scorer. He sits in the EA FC Icons league and the Wales nation pool, which simplifies chemistry links compared to regular club cards.

On the transfer market, this version of Bale is valued at roughly 1.0–1.1 million coins on console and just under 1.0 million on PC. The SBC is tuned to land very close to that price point.

How long the Bale Icon SBC is available

The Bale Icon SBC is flagged as an active Icon challenge with an expiry window of around two weeks from its release. That timing is important because it overlaps with high-value promo content, including Team of the Week cycles, Time Warp squads, and a looming Team of the Year period where upgrade packs can rapidly drain club fodder.

Within that window, there is no repeatability on the main reward. Once the full group is completed, the Icon is granted permanently to the club, and the SBC cannot be done again.

All Gareth Bale Icon SBC group requirements

Bale’s Icon SBC is structured as a large group of 17 individual squad challenges, including an optional loan. The overall group reward is the 88-rated Bale Icon, with a separate five-match loan version on its own segment.

The structure is straightforward on paper: an accessible loan, two TOTW-dependent squads, then a long run of 87- and 88-rated teams with no chemistry or nationality constraints. In practice, the sheer number of high-rated squads pushes the cost to around a million coins in cards, even after accounting for the tradable pack returns.

Loan Bale SBC segment (On a Loan)

The loan segment gives a five-match version of the same 88-rated Icon. It requires only an 84-rated squad with 11 players and no chemistry rules. There are no mandatory in-forms.

One efficient way to reach an 84-rated squad is to rely on lower-cost 84s and a couple of 83s:

• Use multiple 84-rated gold cards such as Romelu Lukaku, Alexander Sørloth, Greggi, Nusken, Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, Alex Greenwood, Damaris Egurrola, Fox, and Hampton.
• Round out the team with two 83-rated cards like Daniëlle van de Donk and Ilkay Gündogan to keep prices under control.

This configuration keeps the average rating at 84 without burning valuable 85+ fodder that is better saved for the main Icon.

Top-notch segment (85-rated with Team of the Week)

The Top-notch squad is the first real gate. It demands:

• Minimum squad rating 85
• At least one Team of the Week player
• 11 players in total

A low-cost template leans on a mix of 85s, a single in-form in the 84–85 range, and one or two 84s to hold the rating:

• Stack several 85-rated players such as Alexandra Popp, Foord, Girelli, Granit Xhaka, Giugliano, Svenja Huth, Vivianne Miedema, Kim Little, and Caroline Weir.
• Add an 84-rated gold like Locatelli, plus an 84-rated TOTW such as Tsygankov to satisfy the in-form requirement.

That layout keeps the in-form slot flexible, so any similar-rated TOTW card from your club can substitute without breaking the rating threshold.

86-Rated Squad segment (with Team of the Week)

The next tier up repeats the in-form condition but raises the average rating target. Requirements are:

• Minimum squad rating 86
• At least one Team of the Week player
• 11 players in total

A cost-effective structure uses a core of 88s and 87s supported by cheaper 84s and an 83-rated TOTW:

• Use high-rated forwards and defenders such as Marie Katoto (88), Irene Paredes (88), Ada Hegerberg (87), and Millie Bright (87).
• Fill the rest with 84-rated cards like Ruben Neves, Maanum, Isco, Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, Manuel Locatelli.
• Finish the squad with an 83-rated in-form such as Buendia to hit the in-form rule without overspending.

Because the requirement is rating-only, any equivalent 88/87/84 mix you already own can be swapped in while still reaching 86 overall.

87-rated squad segments (Tasks 4–11)

The middle of the SBC is dominated by seven separate 87-rated squads. There are no in-form or chemistry conditions; each one simply needs:

• Minimum squad rating 87
• 11 players in total

Repeating these seven times is where most of the cost sits. A typical 87-rated squad template combines four to five 88s with a selection of 85s and 84s:

• Use multiple 88-rated players such as Endler, Irene Paredes, Robert Lewandowski, Marie Katoto, and Gabriel.
• Pad the rating with 85s like Ella Toone, Giugliano, and Girelli.
• Drop in 84s such as Milinkovic-Savic, Maanum, and Ruben Neves to complete the 11 slots while keeping the total rating at 87.

Because there are so many copies of this requirement, it is worth planning ahead. High-rated untradeables from upgrade packs and promo rewards are ideal here, while tradable 88s can be sold to fund lower-rated fodder during market dips.

88-rated squad segments (Tasks 12–17)

The final block of six squads each requires an 88-rated team with 11 players and no special chemistry or in-form requirements. These are the most expensive single segments in the challenge group.

Efficient builds lean heavily on 89–90-rated cards backed by a few 88s, 85s, and 84s:

• Anchor the squad with a 90-rated card like Rodri and several 89s such as Alessia Russo, Khadija Shaw, and Mapi Leon.
• Add 88-rated players including Endler and Marie Katoto.
• Use a trio of 85s such as Girelli, Laura Freigang, and Svenja Huth.
• Finish with a couple of 84s like Isco and Viggosdottir to balance cost and rating.

Multiply that structure by six, and the overall fodder requirement reaches deep into any club, even one that has been saving high-rated cards for weeks.

Estimated total cost and returns

On the SBC tracking sites, Bale’s Icon challenge is priced around:

• Approximately 1.03 million coins on PlayStation and Xbox
• Roughly 920–950 thousand coins on PC

These estimates assume buying the entire set of required cards from the market at current averages. Clubs with a large store of untradeable 87–90 rated players can trim that headline number substantially, but the relative cost remains high compared to other Icons and promo items.

The SBC returns several tradable packs along the way: Small Gold Players Pack, Jumbo Gold Pack, multiple Small Prime Gold Players Packs, and several Rare Gold Packs. Those returns help offset some of the spend if your pack luck is average or better, but they are not enough to turn the challenge into clear profit on their own.

How Bale compares to other Icon SBCs

Bale slots into a wider slate of Icon content in EA FC 26. Other active Icon SBCs include:

• Kelly Smith Time Warp Icon (90 ST) with 12 challenges at a significantly lower cost.
• Bobby Charlton (92 CAM) with 10 challenges and mid-range pricing for a premium central attacker.
• Roberto Baggio Time Warp Icon (92 RW) with six challenges and a price point well below Bale’s.
• Winter Wildcards Icons like Ashley Cole (87 LB) and Michael Essien (88 CDM), each around a quarter of Bale’s cost.

Within that context, Bale sits at the very top of the price spectrum. The set effectively matches his market value, so the SBC is less about saving coins and more about using untradeable fodder to lock in an Icon you plan to keep long term.

Is the Gareth Bale Icon SBC worth completing?

Bale is a high-impact attacker with the pace and end product to dominate wide and central roles. From a pure gameplay perspective, very few right-sided forwards match his combination of acceleration, finishing, and off-the-ball threat.

The opportunity cost is the real question. At around one million coins in fodder, the SBC competes directly with:

• Premium upgrade packs such as 87+ Base Icon upgrades, 1 of 3 Icon Mix picks, and various 87+ campaign picks.
• Other long-term Icons that fill more scarce positions, like Charlton in central attacking midfield or Essien at defensive midfield for a fraction of the price.
• Upcoming promo teams and Team of the Year-level attackers that may outscale this base Icon on raw stats.

For most players, especially those targeting Team of the Year upgrade grinders, this SBC is a luxury. The card is excellent, but the cost leaves little room for parallel investment in upgrade packs and future promo content.

The trade-off is easier if you are a dedicated Bale or Real Madrid fan, or if your club is already stacked with high-rated untradeables that do not fit your squads. In that scenario, converting dead fodder into a guaranteed, top-tier Icon attacker can be justified, even if the overall coin-equivalent cost is high.

For anyone managing a tight balance between fodder and coins in the run-up to major promos, holding back and focusing on flexible, repeatable upgrades is the more efficient path. Bale’s SBC is designed as a statement piece for clubs that can afford it, not as a value play for everyone.