FC26 – Severe VRAM Memory Leak Causing Complete GPU Stall After Multiple Matches
Hi EA / FC26 Technical Team,
I am reporting a critical and reproducible performance issue on PC that renders FC26 completely unplayable after a variable number of matches. I have conducted detailed hardware monitoring sessions using MSI Afterburner and the findings below are based entirely on recorded data — not assumptions.
SYSTEM SPECIFICATIONS
- Laptop: MSI Katana GF76 11UC
- CPU: Intel Core i7-11800H
- GPU: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Laptop GPU (4,096 MB VRAM)
- RAM: 32 GB
- OS: Windows 11 Pro 24H2 (Build 26100.1742)
- GPU Driver: NVIDIA 565.90
- Game: FC 26 (latest update as of March 2026, via Steam)
- DirectX: 12
ISSUE DESCRIPTION
After playing one or more matches, FC26 becomes unplayable due to severe FPS drops. The timing is variable — sometimes the issue begins during the first match, sometimes during the third. The game does not crash or display any error message. Instead, FPS drops from a stable ~60 FPS to 0–7 FPS and remains there for the rest of the session, making the game completely unresponsive. Restarting FC26 resolves the issue temporarily, until the same pattern repeats.
This problem does not occur in any other game on the same hardware. It has been reproduced across multiple Windows versions, multiple NVIDIA driver versions, and after a full clean OS reinstall and fresh game installation. This confirms the issue is entirely isolated to FC26.
HARDWARE MONITORING DATA
The following data was recorded during a monitored session on 16/03/2026 (01:59 – 02:47, duration: 48.8 minutes). The session consisted of 2 Kick-Off matches played without issue, followed by 1 Ultimate Team match during which the stutter began mid-match. All values below come directly from MSI Afterburner logs (2,928 recorded data points).
VRAM USAGE PROGRESSION:
VRAM consumption increased continuously throughout the session and was never released between matches:
- Session start (before any match): 152 MB
- After first match: ~3,500 MB
- Peak before stutter onset: 4,059 MB (out of 4,096 MB hardware limit)
FC26 did not release VRAM between matches at any point during the session. Each match added to the cumulative total without any deallocation.
NORMAL GAMEPLAY (pre-stutter):
- Average FPS: 59.6
- GPU core clock: 1,900–1,965 MHz
- GPU power draw: ~55.5 W average
- GPU temperature: up to 71°C
- CPU temperature: up to 76°C
- All thermal and power values well within normal operating range throughout
DURING STUTTER (VRAM exhausted — VRAM at 4,059 MB):
- Average FPS: 5.7
- Minimum FPS: 0.0
- Average frametime: 201 ms
- Maximum frametime: 1,721 ms
- GPU Frame Buffer available: 0.7 MB average, 4 MB maximum (effectively zero)
- GPU usage: 99–100% (GPU is active and clocked normally but cannot render)
- GPU core clock: stable at 1,965 MHz — no throttling
- GPU temperature during stutter: 64–66°C — completely normal
- GPU power draw during stutter: ~41–43 W
The key observation is that during the stutter, the GPU is running at full clock speed with normal temperatures and power draw. It is not throttling. The only thing that has changed is that the GPU Frame Buffer has dropped to ~0 MB, meaning there is no memory space left to render new frames.
ROOT CAUSE ANALYSIS
The recorded data points to a VRAM memory leak in FC26's Frostbite engine:
1. VRAM fills progressively: 152 MB → 3,500 MB → 4,059 MB across matches with no deallocation between matches.
2. When VRAM reaches the 4,096 MB hardware limit, the GPU Frame Buffer drops to approximately 0 MB. With no frame buffer space available, the GPU cannot produce new frames despite operating at full capacity.
3. This is confirmed not to be a thermal, power, or driver issue. GPU and CPU temperatures remain normal. GPU clock speed does not drop. GPU power draw is stable. Windows System Event Viewer recorded zero GPU-related or DirectX-related errors during the entire stutter period.
4. Restarting FC26 resets VRAM usage back to 152 MB, which confirms that the memory is held by the game process and released only when the process is terminated.
5. The issue is reproducible regardless of Windows version, NVIDIA driver version, or whether the OS and game were freshly installed. This rules out any system-level cause and points exclusively to FC26's memory management behavior.
This pattern is consistent with the VRAM memory leak reported in FC25 (November 2024 – January 2025), which was resolved by an EA patch in January 2025. It appears the same or a similar issue has been reintroduced in FC26 following a November 2025 update.
EXPECTED BEHAVIOR
VRAM should be properly released between matches. After each match ends, GPU memory allocated for that match's assets should be freed, allowing subsequent matches to begin with a clean memory state. On a GPU with 4,096 MB VRAM, it is not acceptable for a single session of 2–3 matches to exhaust the entire video memory budget.
ADDITIONAL NOTES
- Issue is NOT present in any other game tested on the same hardware
- Issue persists across Windows 11 24H2 versions and NVIDIA driver versions
- Issue persists after full OS reinstall and clean game installation
- No errors recorded in Windows Event Viewer during stutter events
- GPU thermal and power readings remain normal throughout — this is purely a VRAM allocation and deallocation failure within FC26
- The only workaround currently available is restarting FC26 every 2–3 matches, which is not an acceptable long-term solution
Please investigate and prioritize a fix. This issue makes FC26 unplayable on any GPU with 4 GB VRAM after a short playing session.
EA account: ozanyilmaz08
