FIFA 19 Winter Upgrades: When will the ratings refresh happen and which players will be upgraded?

In addition to January transfer updates, EA Sports is also increasing the ratings of many of this season's top performers in February

When FIFA 19 was released in September, every single player in the game was given their own unique rating, with individual stats for every aspect of their game from pace to passing, dribbling to tackling, shooting and strength.

As the 2018-19 season progressed, it became clear that many of the players were overperforming compared to their individual rating.

EA Sports tracks how players perform in real life and then updates FIFA 19 accordingly so that the game reflects a player's individual ability and value.

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Every season, many of the world's top performers receive winter upgrades as part of the Ratings Refresh, including Virgil van Dijk, Marco Reus and Son Heung-min.

It is not just highly-rated players who are part of the ratings refresh, however - even players in lower leagues can receive boosts to their overall statistics.

When are the Winter Upgrades happening?

Once the transfer window closed at the end of January, EA Sports started making updates to the FIFA database.

In Ultimate Team, this sees new versions of players released in packs with their new club (and perhaps new league) replacing their previous one. In the past, they have also released new versions of transferred players during the window itself.

This season, the ratings refresh began on Friday, February 15. Just like last year, upgrades for the Premier League led the list and then additional leagues were added every two to three days. Each of the five major European leagues were released separately and then players from the rest of the world were released in a large batch at the end.

Some players also had their positions updated in addition to new clubs or updated ratings, especially if they played a lot of their games at a position other than the one assigned to them at the start of FIFA 19.

In addition, players may also have had their skill move or weak foot ratings changed. For example, Marcus Rashford received a bump in his skill move rating, while Paris Saint-Germain striker Edinson Cavani's weak foot improved from three to four stars.

Which players will receive upgrades?

During the Ratings Refresh period, EA Sports announced each batch of upgraded players on their website, discussion forums and social media accounts. The first set of upgraded players were revealed on February 15, with 23 Premier League players getting new overall scores in FIFA 19. All their individual statistics are also changed to reflect their new overall rating, with some players even getting boosts to pace or finishing.

Here are all the players who have received ratings upgrades in FIFA 19:

Premier League

Player	Club	Old Rating	New Rating
Harry Kane	Spurs	89	90
Virgil van Dijk	Liverpool	85	88
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang	Arsenal	87	88
Alisson	Liverpool	85	87
Toby Alderweireld	Spurs	85	87
Fernandinho	Man City	86	87
Raheem Sterling	Liverpool	85	87
Son Heung-min	Spurs	84	85
Alexandre Lacazette	Arsenal	84	85
Felipe Anderson	West Ham	82	84
Kepa	Chelsea	83	84
Aymeric Laporte	Man City	83	84
Anthony Martial	Man Utd	83	84
Andrew Robertson	Liverpool	81	83
Lucas Torreira	Arsenal	78	82
Marcus Rashford	Man Utd	81	82
Lucas Digne	Everton	78	81
Ruben Neves	Wolves	79	80
Richarlison	Everton	77	80
Matt Doherty	Wolves	74	77
Ryan Fraser	Bournemouth	75	77
James Maddison	Leicester	75	77
Aaron Wan-Bissaka	Crystal Palace	70	76

Bundesliga

Player	Club	Old Rating	New Rating
Marco Reus	Borussia Dortmund	85	88
Thiago	Bayern Munich	86	87
Joshua Kimmich	Bayern Munich	85	86
Axel Witsel	Borussia Dortmund	82	85
Yann Sommer	Borussia M'gladbach	82	84
Timo Werner	RB Leipzig	83	84
Thorgan Hazard	Borussia M'gladbach	81	83
Koen Casteels	Wolfsburg	82	83
Andrej Kramaric	Hoffenheim	82	83
Kerem Demirbay	Hoffenheim	80	82
Nico Schulz	Hoffenheim	78	81
Kai Havertz	Bayer Leverkusen	79	81
Sebastien Haller	Eintracht Frankfurt	78	81
Matthias Ginter	Borussia M'gladbach	80	81
Karim Bellarabi	Bayer Leverkusen	80	81
Jerome Roussillon	Wolfsburg	78	80
Luka Jovic	Eintracht Frankfurt	75	80
Maximilian Eggestein	Werder Bremen	77	79
Yussuf Poulsen	RB Leipzig	77	79
Danny da Costa	Eintracht Frankfurt	75	78
Jadon Sancho	Borussia Dortmund	72	78
Daniel Ginczek	Wolfsburg	76	78
Admir Mehmedi	Wolfsburg	75	77

Serie A

Player	Club	Old Rating	New Rating
Giorgio Chiellini	Juventus	89	90
Kalidou Koulibaly	Napoli	87	88
Milan Skriniar	Inter	85	86
Wojciech Szczesny	Juventus	84	86
Allan	Napoli	82	84
Gianluigi Donnarumma	Milan	82	83
Francesco Acerbi	Lazio	82	83
Aleksandar Kolarov	Roma	82	83
Suso	Milan	82	83
Joao Cancelo	Juventus	81	83
Fabio Quagliarella	Sampdoria	80	82
Arkadiusz Milik	Napoli	80	82
Matteo Politano	Inter	80	82
German Pezzella	Fiorentina	79	81
Duvan Zapata	Atalanta	78	79
Jordan Veretout	Fiorentina	78	79
Joaquin Correa	Lazio	77	79
Federico Chiesa	Fiorentina	77	79
Gervinho	Parma	77	79
Gregoire Defrel	Sampdoria	76	78
Rodrigo De Paul	Udinese	75	77
Krzysztof Piatek	Milan	70	76
Joachim Andersen	Sampdoria	70	75

La Liga

Player	Club	Old Rating	New Rating
Sergio Busquets	Barcelona	88	89
Karim Benzema	Real Madrid	84	85
Dani Carvajal	Real Madrid	84	85
Ousmane Dembele	Barcelona	82	84
Pablo Sarabia	Sevilla	81	83
Lucas Hernandez	Atletico Madrid	82	83
Wissam Ben Yedder	Sevilla	81	82
Sergio Canales	Real Betis	81	82
Giovani Lo Celso	Real Betis	80	82
Jesus Navas	Real Betis	78	81
Dani Ceballos	Real Madrid	78	81
Iker Muniain	Athletic Club	80	81
Fernando Pacheco	Alaves	79	80
Santiago Arias	Atletico Madrid	78	79
Joan Jordan	Eibar	77	78
Borja Iglesias	Espanyol	76	78
Ruben Pena	Eibar	77	78
Dakonam Djene	Getafe	77	78
Junior Firpo	Real Betis	75	77
Mario Hermoso	Espanyol	73	77
Jord Masip	Real Valladolid	74	77
Guillermo Maripan	Alaves	73	77
Toni Villa	Real Valladolid	70	75

Rest of the World

Player	Club	Old Rating	New Rating
Bruno Fernandes	Sporting CP	83	84
Hakim Ziyech	Ajax	82	84
Anderson Talisca	Guangzhou	82	83
Edin Visca	Basaksehir	82	83
Oscar	Shanghai SIPG	82	83
Matthijs de Ligt	Ajax	80	83
Josef Martinez	Atlanta Utd	81	82
Hirving Lozano	PSV	80	82
Frenkie de Jong	Ajax	77	82
Moussa Marega	Porto	80	81
Steven Bergwijn	PSV	77	80
Pozuelo	Genk	76	79
Eder Militao	Porto	75	79
Wesley	Club Brugge	75	78
Leandro Trossard	Genk	76	78
Miralem Sulejmani	Young Boys	77	78
Kevin Mbabu	Young Boys	76	77
Angelino	PSV	73	77
Robert Skov	Kobenhavn	72	75
Nikola Vlasic	CSKA Moscow	70	75
Mbaye Diagne	Galatasaray	73	75

FIFA 19 weak foot upgrades

EA Sports confirmed the players who have been handed upgrades to their weak foot rating, which can be seen in the table below.

Player	Club	Previous rating	New rating
Brahim Diaz	Manchester City	4	5
Kai Havertz	Bayer Leverkusen	4	5
Edin Dzeko	Roma	4	5
Patrick van Aanholt	Crystal Palace	3	4
Edinson Cavani	PSG	3	4
Axel Witsel	Borussia Dortmund	3	4
Lorenzo Insigne	Napoli	3	4
Fabian	Napoli	3	4
Scott Sinclair	Celtic	3	4
Moussa Dembele	Lyon	2	3
Giorgio Chiellini	Juventus	2	3
Kalidou Koulibaly	Napoli	2	3
Stephan El Shaarawy	Roma	2	3

Among the most notable players to be upgraded are former Manchester City midfielder Brahim Diaz, who recently joined Real Madrid, and Bayer Leverkusen star Kai Havertz.

Veteran strikers Edin Dzeko and Edinson Cavani have also improved, while Borussia Dortmund midfielder Axel Witsel and Napoli forward Lorenzo Insigne have too.

Serie A defenders Giorgio Chiellini and Kalidou Koulibaly have also seen their weak foot get stronger, going from ratings of two stars to three stars.

FIFA 19 skill upgrades

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Manchester United striker Marcus Rashford leads the way when it comes to skill upgrades in the February ratings refresh.

The England international has enjoyed a new lease of life under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and is now a five-star skill player in the game.

Player	Club	Previous rating	New rating
Marcus Rashford	Manchester United	4	5
Amine Harit	Schalke	4	5
Franco Cervi	Benfica	4	5
Luciano Acosta	D.C. United	4	5
Enzo Perez	River Plate	3	4
Nahitan Nandez	Boca Juniors	3	4
Tom Ince	Stoke City	3	4
Tom Lawrence	Derby County	3	4
Andros Townsend	Crystal Palace	3	4
Nathan Redmond	Southampton	3	4
Demarai Gray	Leicester City	3	4
Helder Costa	Wolves	3	4
Ryan Sessegnon	Fulham	3	4
Phil Foden	Manchester City	3	4
David Brooks	Bournemouth	3	4
Brahim Diaz	Manchester City	3	4
Callum Hudson-Odoi	Chelsea	3	4
Ever Banega	Sevilla	3	4
Pablo Sarabia	Sevilla	3	4
Giovanni Lo Celso	Real Betis	3	4
Carlos Soler	Valencia	3	4
Adnan Januzaj	Real Sociedad	3	4
Andre Silva	Sevilla	3	4
Francesco Acerbi	Lazio	2	3
Moussa Marega	Porto	2	3
Bruno	Villarreal	2	3

Schalke's Amine Harit, Benfica's Franco Cervi and D.C. United's Luciano Acosta have also improved to become five-star skill players, so they are worth keeping an eye on.

Others who have been given a ratings increase include Leicester City's Demarai Gray and Wolves forward Helder Costa, who are now both four-star skill players.

Want-away Chelsea winger Callum Hudson-Odoi and Manchester City midfielder Phil Foden have also improved.

Will my current players be upgraded?

The rosters in Online Seasons and new Career Modes are automatically updated when your console connects to the EA servers.

Online Seasons squads are upgraded regularly, while you must start a new game in Career Mode for the upgrades to take effect.

Any normal cards you have in your FIFA Ultimate Team club will not be upgraded, but there is the potential that some of the special versions could be upgraded automatically. This includes Team of the Week, Ultimate Scream, FUTmas, Champions League and Europa League live editions, as well as Ones to Watch players.

However, if their base card only receives a small upgrade, there is a chance that the special card will not be upgraded.

All new players found in packs will be upgraded, but the special players in your club will only increase if an upgraded player’s new overall rating equals or surpasses his existing first Team of the Week version’s rating. If a player has multiple special edition cards, all these will be improved if they meet this criteria.