Bad matchmaking

I’m right there with you. Sounds like the issue is more persistent/pervasive for you, but I’ve recently encountered it too. For example, back-to-back VSA matches where my opponent was 20 ranks above me and +3 OVR higher. This weren’t winnable matches (especially in VSA) and they certainly weren’t fun!

One thing I suspect is that, particularly when you are playing very, very early or very, very late in the day and there are fewer users seeking matches in your region, then the matchmaking engine will, simply for expediency’s sake, pair two players that aren’t necessarily equal. In my case (see screenshot below), I was paired with someone from FC Champions +30 which is a relatively small subgroup of all users, and in order to give that user a timely match they paired him with me. On its face it’s an unfair matchup, but what I suspect is happening is that EA prioritizes the speed with which the match is made over the fairness /equity of the pairing. In my case, I playing at 2am local time, and, with relatively fewer users online, it increased my likelihood of getting paired with someone who was “out of my league.”

The way to solve this, of course, and to ensure most (if not all) matches are fair/balanced, is to allow for their to be a slight wait (maybe 30 - 60 seconds), to find an equal opponent. But that does not appear to be the parameter the matchmaking engine is optimized for — it’s optimized first and foremost for speed. Personally, I think this is a mistake and it makes game less fair and less fun, but nobody from EA will reply when I raise it, so (just like with everything else about this game) we shout into “the void” in here and try to take solace in the fact that others are doing the same and feel our pain (because EA sure doesn’t seem to care). 🤷‍♂️