EA CEO Says FIFA License Is Hindering Game Growth

Electronic Arts CEO Andrew Wilson told employees at an internal company meeting in November 2021 that three decades of franchise partnerships are “hampering” the growth of soccer video games, according to a report by VideoGamesChronicle.

Given that next year’s FIFA 23 title is set to be the last EA Sports football game to use the FIFA logo, Wilson seems to have lingering concerns about the FIFA rollout at this time.

“Basically what we got from FIFA at the World Cup this year was the four letters on the front of the box,” Wilson told VGC.

“As for the future, we want to increase the franchise and ironically the FIFA license was actually a hindrance to that.”

According to the VGC report, Wilson also pointed to several instances where FIFA’s influence forced EA Sports to avoid creating add-ons for audiences, from more culturally and commercially relevant brands other than Adidas to new ones. modes beyond traditional 11v11 settings.

“Our Fifa license actually prevents us from doing so much,” Wilson said. “Again, FIFA is just a name in the box, but they denied our ability to dive into the areas players wanted.

“Due to the nature of the approval timeline and the various issues with our FIFA license, it has been really difficult and we are moving slower than we would like.”

In October 2021, FIFA made a startling announcement about the future of gambling and sports games for football players, with its “scalable” and “optimistic” visions where multiple parties “control and exercise all rights “.

Earlier that month, it was also reported that FIFA was looking to double its payout, which will now exceed $1 billion every four years compared to what it currently receives from EA Sports.

EA currently has a 10-year naming contract with FIFA which expires without renewal after the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar ends in December.