EA SPORTS has banned over 10,000 FUT Mobile players in the lead-up to the biggest promotion of the year: Team of the Season (TOTS). The developers allege players were caught cheating in AI matches.

Team of the Season is rolling out across FUT 21, and that includes Mobile.

The Community TOTS promotion in the mobile game is set to start on April 29 — using the same players as the traditional console and PC version — but a fair chunk of players will miss out on it entirely.

EA SPORTS announced on April 28 they have banned over 10,000 players for cheating just before the promotion was meant to drop.

The suspensions will last for three weeks, meaning players who were caught up in the ban wave will miss the promotion entirely, and one last chance to bolster up their teams before the game runs its cycle.

"We've temporarily suspended over 10,000 players that have cheated in PvE/AI matches," they said in the statement.

Exactly what cheats the players used were not disclosed.

According to EA's rules, "cheating can include but isn't limited to, using external tools, performing in-game exploits, and abusing glitches or bugs."

"Games are at their best when everyone can play on a level playing field. Cheating, phishing, hacking, or anything else that gives you a competitive advantage ruins the experience for everyone and impacts the game balance."

The TOTS promotion is set to include powered-up squads from the Premier League, La Liga, Bundesliga, Serie A, and more, and are often the strongest cards in a FUT game's lifecycle.

More cards are rolling out in FUT 21 and FUT Mobile in the next two weeks. Keep your eyes peeled on UTnice for all the updates as they happen.