Chapter 18 · Championship Soccer 2026

Ratings, terms and abbreviations

A complete glossary of player skills, squad columns, positions, career values, match statistics, team attitudes and competition abbreviations.

Read a rating in its football context

Short headings let the game show a complete squad or detailed match report on one screen. The same letters can mean different things in different tables: Pos is a position in a squad, but possession in the match-statistics table. Hover over a heading where available to read its full description.

A skill describes part of an action. Form, fitness, position, timing, direction, pressure, teammates and opponents also matter. A fast player can still lose a race after a poor first touch, and a good finisher can still miss. Read ratings as strengths and weaknesses to work with, rather than guarantees.

Value	How to read the scale
Individual player skills	Usually shown on a 1–20 scale. Higher means more of that quality, although more aggression or financial ambition is not always an advantage.
Overall player ability	A position-weighted level. The source-data ability range is 10–250, separate from individual skills.
Player potential and reputation	Separate career values, not extra 1–20 skills.
Staff ability, potential, reputation and world knowledge	The editor's staff scale is 0–100.
Club and competition reputation	Source files usually use 1–20. This is not the player ability scale.
Match rating	A 1–10 assessment of the performance in that match.
Percentage	A proportion of the named quantity. Fitness, coverage, confidence and other percentages describe different things.

Squad and line-up columns

Code	Meaning	What it tells you
Sta	Status	Availability or an alert. An injury can show approximate weeks unavailable, a suspension the remaining matches in that competition, and contract or wage concerns can appear here. In a live substitution view this space can show current fitness.
Pos	Position	Natural role with suitable side letters, such as D LC.
Age	Age	Age in the career's season. It influences development, decline, value and career decisions.
AvR	Average rating	The average of recorded competitive performances. It describes results on the pitch, not just underlying ability.
gls	Goals	Recorded competitive goals for the current season.
mat	Matches	Recorded competitive appearances for the current season.
val	Value	The present transfer valuation. It is an estimate, not a guaranteed selling price.
ctr	Contract concern	The contract is at or near its end. Open the player's Contract information for the actual term and renewal situation.
unh	Unhappy	A wage concern is calling for attention. Open Happiness and Contract information for the reason.

The squad's information controls switch between its general page and groups of attributes. Use the formation and squad views to distinguish starters, substitutes and the rest of the squad. A player can be fit but suspended, registered in the squad but outside the matchday selection, or eligible for one competition and banned in another.

See Squad, tactics and players for selection and substitutions.

Positions and sides

Code	Role	Where the role belongs
GK	Goalkeeper	The goal and penalty area.
SW	Sweeper	Cover behind the main defensive line.
D	Defender	The defensive line.
DM	Defensive midfielder	Between defence and midfield.
M	Midfielder	Central or wide midfield.
AM	Attacking midfielder	Between midfield and the forwards.
F	Forward	The attacking line.
L	Left	The left side of an outfield role.
C	Centre	The central area.
R	Right	The right side of an outfield role.
LC / CR / LCR	Several suitable sides	The player can suit more than one lane.

The letters describe a natural role and suitability. The position chosen in your formation describes the job you are asking the footballer to do today. These are related but need not be identical. A good player used in an unsuitable place can be less effective than his headline ability suggests.

Goalkeeper suitability is based on the goalkeeping role and qualities, rather than treating the goalkeeper as an ordinary left- or right-sided outfield position. For outfield players, check both role and side. The Team Editor lets authors describe starting positions, while training develops players during a career.

The fourteen core skills

Code	Skill	Football meaning
spd	Speed	Running pace, useful in breaks, recovery runs and races for loose balls. Ball control also affects movement while carrying the ball.
shp	Shot power	Force available for shots and other deliberate strikes. Fitness and the situation affect what can be produced at the moment of contact.
shc	Shot control	Clean striking, accuracy and the ability to shape the ball. Timing and direction remain important.
sta	Stamina	Resistance to fatigue and the ability to sustain effort through a match.
dri	Dribbling	Quality of movement with the ball. It works alongside speed, ball control and agility.
jmp	Jumping	Aerial reach for high balls, headers and goalkeeping actions.
ant	Anticipation	Reading and reacting to developing play, including a loose ball, a pass or a change of direction.
agi	Agility	Turning and changing direction while retaining useful movement and balance.
tck	Tackling	Effectiveness in ground challenges. Angle, timing and aggression still affect whether the challenge succeeds or becomes a foul.
hea	Heading	Quality of contact and direction when heading. Jumping helps the player reach the contest.
bco	Ball control	First touch and close control, including how well the player can retain pace in possession.
han	Handling	A goalkeeper's ability to take control cleanly instead of leaving a rebound.
ref	Reflexes	Quick reactions, especially to shots, rebounds and sudden changes.
agg	Aggression	Competitive intensity and readiness to commit to challenges. More is not automatically better when discipline and timing are poor.

Sta as a squad heading means status. sta on an attribute page means stamina. BCo in the match report counts ball contacts and is not the player's Ball control skill.

The first thirteen qualities form the physical and technical profile used for the overall ability calculation. Aggression is a separate character quality. For the exact input names, 1–20 values and +/- hints used by custom datasets, see Editing game data.

Playing style and career character

Quality	Meaning
Long shots	Inclination towards attempting shots from distance. It does not remove the need for shot power, control and a worthwhile shooting opportunity.
Teamwork	Preference for collective play, support and combination with teammates.
Attacking mentality / Offensiveness	How readily the player favours advanced attacking positions.
Forward runs	Inclination to leave the current line and attack space.
Vision	Awareness of useful options, particularly in passing and creative play.
Adaptability	How the player settles after moving into a different country.
Loyalty	Attachment and commitment in contract and career decisions.
Salary expectations / Financial ambition	The importance of financial reward in the player's expectations. The source-file keyword is greed.

These qualities help footballers with similar visible skills behave differently. A creative passer, a direct runner and a combative ball winner may have comparable overall ability but need different teammates and tactical instructions.

Ability, form, potential and morale

Term	Meaning
Ability	A summary of present core skills weighted for the player's position.
Main ability	A youth player's current football level in the natural role, rather than a forecast of the final player.
Potential	The outlook for development. It creates room for growth, but training, age and career progress still matter.
Fixed potential	A created player's selected potential remains fixed when that creation mode is chosen.
Dynamic potential	A created player's development outlook can change with career performances in that creation mode.
Reputation	Recognition and standing in the football world. It can differ from current ability.
Performance assessment	A longer-term judgement of a human career player's delivered performances, used in the football world's view of that player.
Form	Recent playing rhythm. It can change faster than permanent skills.
Fitness	Physical readiness. Match exertion and injury affect it, and tired players cannot reproduce every action at full strength.
Team form	The side's current collective playing rhythm.
Confidence	The club's current belief in its situation, shaped by results and expectations.
Team morale	The wider mood of the squad.
Happiness	The player's view of playing time, results, wages, teammates and other parts of club life.
Value	The current transfer valuation, influenced by quality, age, potential, recognition, contract circumstances and football context.

Potential is not a promise that a player will reach a specific value by a particular birthday. A good scouting estimate is also not the same as complete knowledge. If a value is unknown or represented by an estimate, improve the information before treating two close numbers as an exact ranking.

Career roles explains player creation, Training and youth explains development, and Transfers and contracts explains value and negotiations.

Post-match statistics

The match report lists the players who took part, including substitutes, and retains dismissed players where appropriate. The 2026 report also identifies each player's actual match role and minutes. A dash means that a particular detail is unavailable, for example in an older saved report. It should not be read as a measured zero.

Code	Meaning	How to read it
Role	Match position	The role played in this match. A player who went off retains his last recorded on-field role.
Min	Minutes played	Time played, limited to the normal 90- or 120-minute match length for display.
GKS	Goalkeeper saves	Held or parried shots credited to the goalkeeper where detailed match evidence is available.
Gls	Goals	Goals credited to the player.
Ass	Assists	The recognised final pass or touch before a teammate's goal.
Sav	Shots saved by the goalkeeper	This player's shots that the opposing keeper stopped. It is a shooting statistic, separate from GKS.
Mis	Shots missing the goal	Attempts that finish wide or over without being saved.
Wwk	Woodwork	Attempts that hit a post or the crossbar.
PCo	Passes complete	Passes received by a teammate with possession established.
PIC	Passes incomplete	Passes that do not achieve that outcome.
PIn	Pass interceptions	Opposition passes the player is credited with cutting out.
TkW	Tackles won	Recognised direct contests won by the player.
TkL	Tackles lost	Recognised direct contests lost by the player.
BCo	Ball contacts	Recognised touches and involvements, including more than only passes and shots.
Pos	Possession	Accumulated personal time in control of the ball. It is not the team's possession percentage.
Tac	Tactical evaluation	How well the player's movement respected the assigned position.
Rat	Rating	Overall match performance on the 1–10 scale.

Man of the match identifies the highest-rated performance. Attendance is the crowd. Player career statistics distinguish the current season from the whole career and record appearances, goals, assists, average performance and man-of-the-match awards.

How actions and ratings are counted

The report follows recognised outcomes. A pass can be incomplete because it is overhit, goes out, is cut out or fails to establish team possession. One loose attempted pass is enough to make PIC nonzero even after many good combinations. Read it beside PCo rather than as a judgement of every attacking decision.

PIC and PIn are not guaranteed to have identical totals. An incomplete pass is the passing player's result, while an interception needs an opponent to be credited with cutting it out. Similarly, Sav belongs to the shooter, whereas GKS belongs to the goalkeeper and counts the saving action.

BCo can exceed the combined number of passes and shots because players also control loose balls, contest possession and make other contacts. Personal Pos describes time on the ball, not the total effectiveness of that time. A defender can contribute well through positioning even when another player gets the final touch.

The match rating combines the football contribution with role, time on the pitch, discipline and team result. Attacking involvement, chances, passes, crosses, defensive contests, goalkeeping and positioning can all matter. No single table column determines Rat. The live performance messages help explain important contributions while you play, including work away from the ball.

See Matchday for the report, match feedback and on-screen panels.

Team attitudes and tactical terms

Code	Attitude	What it asks of the side
MBB	Men behind ball	The strongest collective preference for defensive depth and numbers behind possession.
DEF	Defensive	A deeper structure with reduced forward commitment.
COU	Counter Attack	A compact defensive phase with quicker forward movement after possession is won.
CAU	Cautious	A balanced shape with a defensive preference.
COF	Controlled Offensive	An attacking preference while retaining more recovery structure.
OFF	Offensive	More commitment to attacks, with more space accepted behind the team.
AOA	All out attack	The greatest team-wide commitment to forward play.

A formation is the shape and the roles within it. Attitude is the team's broad defensive or attacking approach. Individual movement, marking and passing instructions refine those choices. A more attacking attitude does not make every player better, and can expose space if possession is lost.

With the ball and without the ball describe the team's attacking and defensive phases. Marking is the task of controlling an opponent or area. Pressing asks players to close the opposition. Counterattack is the transition into an attack after winning possession. Set pieces are restarts such as corners and free kicks. See Squad and tactics for the controls that set them.

League, competition and event codes

Code or term	Meaning
Rank	Position in the table.
P	Matches played.
W	Wins.
D	Draws.
L	Losses.
GF	Goals for, scored by the team.
GA	Goals against, conceded by the team.
GD	Goal difference, goals for minus goals against.
PTS	Points.
AET	After extra time.
A.P	After penalties. A shoot-out decided the winner.
(og)	Own goal in the current English match-event text.
Yellow card	A caution. The competition's accumulated disciplinary record can lead to suspension.
Second yellow	A second caution in the same match and dismissal.
Red card	Direct dismissal.
No match	The team has no opponent in that slot, for example a bye.
Promotion / relegation	Movement up or down the league system after a season.
Qualification	A route into another stage or competition.
Aggregate	The combined result over the legs of a tie.

The final match score and a penalty-shoot-out score describe different parts of the result. A goal in a shoot-out is not an ordinary goal added to the match score. Competition tables and result pages explain the current stage. Competitions and the football world covers navigation and season structure.

Career, staff and transfer terms

Term	Meaning
Manager	The person responsible for club and team decisions.
Player	A participant pursuing an individual playing career under the club's coach.
Player-manager	A participant combining playing and managerial responsibility.
Observer	A participant following the world without currently controlling a player or club.
Coach's trust	The coach's confidence in a career player's contribution and readiness.
Squad role	The expected place in the pecking order, such as regular starter, rotation option or substitute. It is not a promise that every match will follow it.
Job security	The board's confidence in the manager remaining in charge.
Manager reputation	The football world's view of the manager's record and standing.
World knowledge	A staff member's breadth of knowledge beyond the immediate club.
Scouting knowledge	How much the club knows about a player, including identity, sporting qualities and development outlook.
Coverage	Which areas or groups a scouting service reaches, and how much of them it can cover.
Freshness	How current the available information is.
Transfer fee	Money paid to obtain the player's registration from another club.
Wage	The player's or staff member's pay. Check the period shown by the screen before comparing it.
Signing bonus / loyalty bonus	An additional payment linked to signing or an agreed condition.
Loan	A temporary move while the player's permanent contract remains with the parent club.
Purchase option	An agreed opportunity for the borrowing club to buy the player.
Compensation / settlement	A payment connected with ending a contract or moving a contracted member of staff.
Transfer-listed	The club is making the player available for a move.
Free agent	A player without a current club contract.
Transfer window	The period in which the relevant moves can be completed.
Academy / youth squad	The club's developing young players before or alongside senior football.

Read the exact offer before agreeing: fee, wage, timing, role, duration and any conditions all affect what is being proposed. Transfers and contracts, Club management and Staff and scouting explain the full workflows.