Finest Gamers for Iconic Attacker & Defender Evolution – Gameplay, Leaks & Tech

• Primary Subject: FC 26 – ICON Swaps Evolutions
• Key Update: The Iconic Glow Up Evolutions allow you to turn any cards into amazing 90-rated attackers and defenders.
• Status: Confirmed
• Last Verified: February 3, 2026
• Quick Answer: Exchange 10 Icon Swaps tokens for the Attacker Evo or 4 tokens for the Defender Evo to upgrade cards like Claudia Pina or Van de Ven to 90 OVR.

If you don’t see yourself grinding all the Tokens in FC 26 for the 94-rated Ronaldo Nazário card, the other reward worth getting is the Iconic Attacker Glow Up and Iconic Defender Glow Up Evolutions. 

Both the Evolutions provide massive stat boosts for the position with one absolute meta PlayStyle+. Continue reading to know the best players for the evolution.

How to Unlock the Iconic Attacker and Iconic Defender Glow Up Evolution

Credit: EA Sports

Both the Iconic Attacker Glow Up and Iconic Defender Glow Up Evolutions are part of the ICON Swaps rewards and can be unlocked after completing their respective SBCs. 

The attacker upgrade costs 10 Tokens, while the defender will require 4 Tokens. You can check out our full breakdown on how to get these Tokens fast. 

Best Players for Iconic Attacker Glow Up Evolution in FC 26

Credit: EA Sports

The five most standout FC 26 players for the Iconic Attacker Glow Up Evolution are:

• Claudia Pina (POTM)
• Melchie Dumornay (Thunderstruck)
• Antoine Griezmann (Ultimate Scream)
• Rafael Leão (Ultimate Scream)
• Lionel Messi (TOTW)

The stat upgrades the Evolution provides are massive. That means most of the cards are going to end up with the same stats. Some will have slightly higher stats, but the difference will be marginal, nothing worth stressing over.

All of it then comes down to PlayStyles. Claudia Pina has been meta because she continues to perform well above her stats. If there is any Evolution that provides useful upgrades to Pina, she is probably the top pick.

If you want to try someone different than Pina for once, all our other picks are equally good.

Best Players for Iconic Defender Glow Up Evolution in FC 26

Credit: EA Sports

The five most standout players for Iconic Defender Glow Up Evolution are:

• Micky van de Ven (Gold, TOTW)
• Moïse Bombito (Gold)
• Ledley King (Winter Wildcards Hero)
• Dan-Axel Zagadou (Winter Wildcards)
• Theo Hernández (Gold)

Because the Evolution provides good defensive upgrades with all the important PlayStyles, it is a perfect upgrade for some pure-pace merchants like van de Ven and Bombito. 

For low-rated cards, you can stack some other upgrades first and then use the Iconic Defender Glow Up to add the final touches. It also leaves cards at 88, so they should be eligible for future chains.

Both Evolutions are excellent, although picking up the R9 card is a better choice. Unlocking him does take a lot of work, as you have to earn 19 of the available 20 Tokens. The first batch of available 10 is grindy but obtainable. We will have to see how the remaining 10 will be handed out by EA. 

That’s everything about the Iconic Attacker and Defender Glow Up Evolution in FC 26

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