FC 27 Squad Battles Glitch: How Disabling Match Rules Risks a Ban

A bug in FC 27 lets players open the match rules inside Squad Battles and switch off the parts of football that normally get in the way of scoring. It is spreading because it looks like an easy way to farm points against the CPU, but the trade-off is a real risk to your account.

Quick answer: On the Match Preview screen, open Game Settings, move to the Match tab, and turn off offsides, handballs, bookings and injuries. Doing this counts as exploiting a bug and can get your account banned.

What the Squad Battles glitch changes

Squad Battles pits you against AI-controlled teams across difficulty tiers that run from Beginner up to Legendary. Higher difficulty returns more points, and more points move you toward better rewards. The glitch targets that scoring by letting you edit referee rules that should be locked before kickoff.

Footballers compete during a daytime stadium match, with red and white teams attacking near the penalty area. — Squad Battles opponent selection opens Difficulty Selection with tiers from Beginner to Ultimate. Shown at 00:05 in iHazCarrot’s video. Image: EA CANADA

Once you reach the Match tab, the referee section becomes editable when it should not be. Every toggle that enforces the laws of the game can be switched off, and referee strictness can be dropped to nothing.

Offsides set to OFF
Handballs set to OFF
Bookings set to OFF
Injuries set to OFF
Referee strictness reduced to the lowest setting

With those rules gone, there are no offside calls, no fouls, and nothing else that would normally stop a run of play. That is what makes it possible to pile up goals on Legendary and chase leaderboard points far faster than a clean match allows.

How players trigger the exploit

Enter Squad Battles, choose your opponent, and pick a difficulty. The exploit works even at the hardest tier.

Advance through squad verification, side selection and kit selection until you reach the Match Preview screen showing both lineups.

A red-shirted footballer battles an opposing player for the ball during a competitive stadium match in daylight. — Squad verification, controller side selection, and kit selection lead to the Match Preview screen. Shown at 00:15 in iHazCarrot’s video. Image: EA CANADA

From the prompt on screen, choose Game Settings rather than Play Match.

A collage shows footballers in a locker room, Rush-branded changing areas, and a white-kit player during a daytime stadium match. — Game Settings is selected from Match Preview instead of Play Match. Shown at 00:26 in iHazCarrot’s video. Image: EA CANADA

Switch from the Gameplay tab to the Match tab, scroll to the Referee section, and turn off bookings, handballs, offsides, and injuries while lowering referee strictness.

Players contest the ball in a packed stadium during a nighttime match between Atlético Madrid and Roma. — Referee settings show Bookings, Handballs, Offsides, and Injuries turned off with adjusted strictness. Shown at 00:41 in iHazCarrot’s video. Image: EA CANADA

Once play begins, the CPU ignores both restrictions: an attacker beyond the defensive line can receive a forward pass while offside, and heavy challenges result in no cards.

Maroon and blue footballers chase the ball across a crowded stadium pitch during a nighttime match. — An attacker receives a long ball while offside and scores without an offside call. Shown at 00:58 in iHazCarrot’s video. Image: EA CANADA

Why it does not guarantee a win

Turning off the whistle cuts both ways. You are still facing a Legendary AI, and that opponent plays by the same broken conditions you set. It will slide in aggressively without fear of cards and push deep into offside positions to attack your goal.

A white-shirted defender slides to challenge a red-shirted attacker for the ball on a stadium pitch. — Heavy tackles and fouls occur without disciplinary bookings or cards under modified referee settings. Shown at 01:18 in iHazCarrot’s video. Image: EA CANADA

Clips of the glitch in action show the CPU exploiting the lawless pitch just as freely as the player. So the “guaranteed” win it promises is not reliable, and the extra goals can flow in either direction.

Ban risk during FC 27 early access

EA Sports can penalize an account for using any exploit to gain an unfair result, and that is not limited to third-party cheats. Gaming a bug or glitch falls under the same rules, and the publisher has handed out temporary and permanent bans for it in the past. The terms are laid out in the official EA Sports FC rules on fair play.

The numbers make this a poor wager. At the season’s outset, Squad Battles rewards rise only slightly, so the exploit provides little return. Risking an entire account for several additional packs, particularly during the early access window, is not a sensible trade.

Editing these match rules to farm points is an exploit under EA’s policy, and the safest choice is to leave the Match settings untouched and play the mode as intended.