- EA Sports and FIFA will part ways in 2022 after 30 years of history
- Over 14.3 million FC 24 accounts activated in the first four weeks
- Latest deal will add UEFA EURO 2024 to the game next summer
EA Sports says the rebranding of the multi-billion dollar FIFA franchise to EA Sports FC was a “once in a lifetime opportunity” to build a global platform for soccer that goes beyond video games.
The publisher ended its highly successful partnership with the world football governing body last year after failing to agree terms. EA wanted greater freedom to pursue more digital and commercial opportunities, while FIFA reportedly wanted to double annual fees to $300 million.
FIFA 23 was the last game in the series to bear the FIFA brand, and EA FC 24 debuted in September of this year.
David Jackson, vice president of brand at EA Sports FC, told SportsPro Podcast that the prospect of replacing a hugely successful brand synonymous with soccer video games is a daunting but exciting prospect. Told.
“I have 30 years of deep feelings, [FIFA] “The products we create have generations to relate to,” he said. “But the most important feeling is [the rebrand] It was one of immense opportunity, an opportunity to build something.
“We have a lot of capital, so we’re not building it from scratch. [EA FC] is still an EA Sports game and has the quality that comes with it, but it’s also about creating something with a blank canvas and building what we hope will be a long-lived and beloved global soccer platform. It’s also an opportunity.
“This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for any organization, and certainly for me and my team.”
Jackson said the name “FC” was chosen because most countries around the world use some variation as a prefix or suffix for soccer clubs, and because the two-syllable acronym is used in video games. He explained that this is because it is likely to replace “FIFA” in the glossary. .
Although EA has lost its license to FIFA and the brand recognition that comes with it, it hasn’t lost the intellectual property (IP) that makes its soccer simulations so reliable. Instead, it has doubled down on individual deals with the likes of the Premier League, UEFA Champions League and La Liga, now officially known as EA Sports La Liga, to ensure that authentic presentation, club branding and player likeness are in-game. guaranteed to be featured in
The latest agreement is with UEFA to include next summer’s Euro 2024 in the game, marking the first time the tournament will be featured since Euro 2012 was added to FIFA 12. The free game update will be accompanied by a new esports tournament.
So far, the marketing push that reinforces the idea that EA Sports FC is a continuation of FIFA’s legacy seems to be working. EA Sports FC 24’s physical sales were down 30% compared to FIFA 23’s sales, which is more indicative of changing consumption habits, with digital downloads becoming more influential.
11.3 million players loaded into FC 24 in the first seven days after launch. This is more than his 10.3 million in FIFA 23. However, this number also includes his EA Play subscribers, so it doesn’t mean that 11.3 million people paid for the game. Up front, this means more players in the EA Sports FC ecosystem will be spending money on in-app purchases for Ultimate Team, potentially drawing attention to EA’s new commercial partners.
In the first 24 days, over 1.6 billion matches were played, 4.1 billion goals were scored, and matches were played in over 200 countries. FC 24 also topped the UK Physical Chart following Black Friday discounts, highlighting long-tail sales.
Although the 30-year relationship between FIFA and EA Sports has been very successful for both parties, the terms of the agreement have changed in some respects, particularly regarding expansion into other types of game genres, the launch of new esports platforms, and negotiations. This placed restrictions on EA Sports. commercial partnership. Essentially, this made it impossible for Jackson and his team to build the global soccer platform they had hoped for.
“Like many IP owners, FIFA sells categories, and ours was ‘simulation, football video games,’” Jackson said. “So they won’t be able to build media platforms or social networks, market or bid on broadcast highlights, or build arcade football simulations. [create] A lot of things that I think our players expect from us in the future. ”
Already, EA Sports has used that freedom to create tactical soccer games, signed a major global partnership with PepsiCo, and provided in-game advertising to Amazon. Expanding the reach of the EA Sports FC ecosystem means increased revenue and expanded reach across first-party and third-party channels.
“We have a great relationship with [Fifa partner] Adidas,” Jackson said as an example. “They are great partners for us, but we want to work with Nike.”