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Beginning in 2023, EA’s flagship football title will no longer be called FIFA. Instead, the new name will be EA Sports FC. Very little else will change. The same clubs, player licenses and game modes will still feature.
It comes as no surprise. Both FIFA and EA have stated several times over the last few months that they’re struggling to reach a deal. According to a New York Times report last year, FIFA wanted “more than double” the amount of money from EA to renew the licence. Which would have been over $1bn for each four-year World Cup cycle.
We first heard of EA’s plan to move away from the FIFA brand in October last year. EA said they were “exploring” the idea. It must have been a fruitful exploration as shortly after EA registered a trademark for EA Sports FC. Then, in February this year, EA boss Andrew Wilson described FIFA as “four letters on the front of the box”.
EA officially announced the name change on May 10th, just before their annual financial briefing. “Everything you love about our games will be part of EA Sports FC - the same great experiences, modes, leagues, tournaments, clubs, and athletes,” wrote EA Sports Executive Cam Weber. “Ultimate Team, Career Mode, Pro Clubs, and Volta Football will all be there."
“Our unique licensing portfolio of more than 19,000+ players, 700+ teams, 100+ stadiums and 30 leagues that we’ve continued to invest in for decades will still be there, uniquely in EA Sports FC. That includes exclusive partnerships with the Premier League, La Liga, Bundesliga, Series A, the MLS - and more to come.”
As for this year, which is a World Cup year, the upcoming FIFA 23 will be released by EA with its current branding - and will be the last game in the series to do so.
“We are committed to ensuring the next FIFA is our best ever,” Weber stated, “with more features, game modes, World Cup content, clubs, leagues, competitions, and players than any FIFA title before.”
Weber concluded his report with: “We’re thankful for our many years of great partnership with FIFA. The future of global football is very bright, and fandom around the world has never been stronger. We have an incredible opportunity to put EA Sports FC at the heart of the sport, and to bring even more innovative and authentic experiences to the growing football audience.”
EA said it would share more details on EA Sports FC in Summer 2023.
Following EA’s announcement, FIFA president Gianni Infantino has responded, insisting, “the only authentic, real game that has the FIFA name will be the best one available for gamers and football fans.”
At the same time, FIFA also announced it’ll be adopting a “non-exclusive licensing model for games based on its brand moving forward”. And that it’s currently working with third-party studios and publishers to develop new projects. It says this will enable it to provide “more choice for football and gaming fans in the lead-up to the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 and FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia & New Zealand 2023.”
What are your thoughts? Is FIFA merely four letters on the box or does this spell danger for EA’s future football titles? Let us know on social media.