Since last year, there has been talk of EA plans to drop the name FIFA once and for all. Apparently, the cost of renewing the license has become too expensive to EAwhich is why they are looking to distance themselves from this association and start their own brand of soccer games.
Now, a new report by VGC mentions that the EA CEO Andrew Wilson described to the license FIFA as an “impediment” and “four letters on the front of a box, in a world where people don’t even see the boxes anymore because they prefer to buy the digital game.”
According to this report, Wilson he argued that dropping the license will allow them to expand their catalog of games and be more flexible with the type of content within them. They will not lose any team or league, since these are managed separately. In the own words of Wilson:
“As we look into the future, we want to grow the franchise and ironically the FIFA license has been an impediment to doing this. Our players tell us that they want more culturally and commercially relevant brands in their markets that are more involved with the game – brands like Nike. But since FIFA has a relationship with Adidas, we can’t do that.”
Wilson went on to say that EA Sports has even had problems expanding the gameplay traditional 11 against 11 in games of FIFAdue to restrictions by the licensee.
“I could tell you, it’s been a fight for FIFA to recognize the kind of things we want to create, because they say our license only covers certain categories.”
Some recent games FIFA have included Volta Football as an alternative way to play, but this content definitely feels a lot more watered down compared to the main game.
In this same report, it is mentioned that Wilson met with the president of the FIFA to discuss some of the biggest concerns he had about the future of these games:
“I met with Gianni Infantino, president of FIFA, a couple of weeks ago where I told him, ‘Look, money is an issue: we don’t want to pay more than the license is worth. But it’s not about that, it’s about our ability to deliver games and experiences that our fans want.”
for now, FIFA 23 It is still scheduled to be released at some point this year, so in reality the decision to change its name would be reflected until the 2024 delivery.
Publisher’s note: FIFA games definitely need improvement, as while recent installments have proven to be a step forward for the franchise, they’re not great either. If EA really wants to evolve the saga, sooner or later it will have to distance itself from the license or outright reach a new agreement.
Via: VGC