EA Sports and FIFA Split: Implications and Changes Ahead

The two went into an agreement in 1993, not hoping for it to become a billion-dollar industry; however, given the boost in technology in the past few years, the video game industry took a significant leap. Soon, the FIFA game gained considerable popularity, making the two establishments refresh the contract after every few years until they decided to terminate the partnership. 

Reports say that one of the reasons the two splits is that FIFA wanted to double its revenue every year to $300 Million. At the same time, EA wanted to introduce many new elements in the game that FIFA disagreed with. FIFA wanted EA to limit itself to football simulation. EA reportedly wants more freedom regarding advancing its games and eSports tournaments and intends to introduce NFTs through its most famous game, FIFA. While FIFA didn't agree to any of the proposals, they also expected a doubling of their annual fee, which led to the split after a 30-years long partnership. The negotiations went on for six months; however, the two couldn't come up with a settlement.

The current agreement is still valid till the end of this year, which means that FIFA23 will be the last FIFA game by EA. By 2023, the game will be released under EA's name instead of FIFA's current term. The new game is not expected to suffer much financial damage as the FIFA fans would not feel any difference. The new game is scheduled to be released with 300 licenses, and the players will have access to a number of teams, leagues, players and stadiums. 

The EA Chief Executive, Andrew Wilson, on being asked about the banner EA Sports FC, under which all the new soccer games will be released from 2023, said, "For nearly 30 years, we've been building the world's biggest football community – with hundreds of millions of players, thousands of athlete partners, and hundreds of leagues, federations, and teams. EA Sports FC will be the club for every one of them and for football fans everywhere."

EA is hopeful that the game community and fans will help spread the word, and it will not lose its audience as a result of the name change. EA believes that the partners' leagues and clubs will also help spread awareness about the new name. Though the game may still be called FIFA by many for a long time, EA is hopeful that "FC" will soon catch up owing to the worldwide marketing by leagues and clubs.