Hey Gamers,
After community feedback, and internal testing, we have decided to add Warrior to the list of banned traits. This decision is based on the idea that using Warrior leads to situations where players are unfairly given an advantage, for example where a player is hit and recovers faster than the player who made the hit. Additionally, there is the possible meta interaction to consider where banning Truculence, but leaving Warrior available could, and from observation of recent games has, lead to a large increase in Warrior use due to it not having a natural 'counter' available to players – tilting the scales in favour of forwards vs. defenders.
As stated previously, we have been monitoring the community discussion and while there is an active ongoing discussion about the banning of other traits, especially Sponge, at this time we have only received concrete evidence of Warrior exhibiting game-altering behaviour, and as such we have elected to not include any additional traits in this latest ban update.
Our intention by implementing this change before the start of the ECL pre-season is to provide teams with as stable a base as possible in their ongoing preparations for the upcoming ECL ’26: Winter season.
As far as other traits go, we will of course continue to examine community feedback, as well as gameplay balance, and revisit if need be, but at present the evidence in front of us leads us to believe that no other remaining unbanned traits are in the game altering position that Warriors holds.
ECL ’26: Winter Restrictions
After extensive discussion and testing, the League Administration has decided to continue restricting several player Abilities and Builds that were found to have a disproportionate impact on gameplay.
The following restrictions apply across all ECL divisions for the ECL ’26: Winter season.
🛑 Banned Abilities
All tiers (Gold, Blue, and Red) of the following abilities are banned:
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Big Rig
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Big Tipper
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Elite Edges
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Hipster
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No Contest
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Pressure+
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Spark Plug
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Truculence
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Unstoppable
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Warrior
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Wheels
These abilities have shown to create unbalanced or unintended gameplay advantages, reducing the importance of player skill and positioning. Specifically, as a category, we have wanted to slow down the gameplay by prohibiting abilities that add significant speed boosts. The bans help ensure that all players compete on an even playing field, where awareness and execution matter most.
⚔️ Position-Based Build Restrictions
To further preserve role balance and gameplay authenticity:
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Forwards cannot use defensive classes:
- Defensive Defender, Enforcer Defender, Offensive Defender, Two-Way Defender, Puck Moving Defender
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Defenders cannot use forward classes:
- Dangler, Enforcer, Grinder, Playmaker, Power Forward, Sniper, Two-Way Forward
Additionally, skaters and goalies cannot use special characters or custom character builds.
🧾 Enforcement
Violations of the above bans will be handled as follows:
- 1st Infraction – Team captain warning + player suspended for 2 games + potential WO loss*
- 2nd Infraction – Second captain warning + full lineup warning + player suspended for 4 games + potential WO loss*
- 3rd Infraction – Captain suspended for 2 games + player suspended for 4 games + 2-point deduction + potential WO loss*
*A Walkover (WO) loss will only apply if the offending team was clearly informed and continued to use banned Abilities or Builds afterward. Clear video evidence is required when reporting violations.
You can view the full ECL '26: Winter - Official Rules here.
Looking Forward
While the overall ability structure remains similar to previous seasons, the addition of position-based build restrictions represents another step toward a stronger global standard.
As always, we’ll continue to monitor gameplay trends and community feedback throughout the Winter season and forward your feedback directly to EA SPORTS.
Thank you once again for your ongoing passion and input — it’s what continues to drive the ECL forward.
Best regards,
League Administration
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