By Jacob Feldman
Sports Business Reporter
More than a year after FIFA’s decades-long run with EA Sports ended on sour terms and it vowed to produce a better soccer video game series by itself, the global governing body is back with a new licensed game—this time a free-to-play, non-simulation mobile offering built with the ability for players to buy and sell in-game athletes on the blockchain.
FIFA’s latest venture arrives as EA has seen continued sales growth since rebranding its own soccer video title as EA Sports FC.
FIFA Rivals from Mythical Games will launch globally, following the company’s previous NFL Rivals title, which drew 5 million downloads and more than 115 million individual games played in its first season. The new EA franchise reached more than 11 million players worldwide within 10 days of launching its first FC title last year, the company said, with another 11 million playing the mobile version.
“Our goal is to replicate our success with [the] previous Rivals game and set new benchmarks in the web3 gaming sector,” Mythical Games CEO and founder John Linden said in a statement. “The combination of officially licensed football stars (past and present), prestigious clubs from around the world, and globally competitive esports gameplay will take sports gameplay to a new level. Through this long-term partnership with FIFA, there are major plans to integrate into the FIFA esports platform to give players in every country the ability to become a participant or fan.”
In FIFA Rivals, currently planned for a summer 2025 release, players will be able to build up their own lineups, play in player-vs.-player matchups, and buy, sell or trade stars through in-game and web marketplaces.
Meanwhile speculation continues about a potential full-blown, console-based FIFA-backed simulation competitor to EA Sports FC, potentially coming out ahead of the 2026 World Cup.
“We will develop a new e-game, because [the] football simulation game is called FIFA for hundreds of millions of children around the world,” FIFA president Gianni Infantino said in May. “When they play [a] football simulation game, they play FIFA, it cannot be named something else.”
The new game, Infantino added, “as everything we do, will be the best.”
Electronic Arts released the first officially licensed FIFA game in 1993 and reportedly generated more than $20 billion in sales since 2000.
FIFA’s relationship with EA ended after FIFA reportedly increased its asking price to more than $1 billion per four-year World Cup cycle, in addition to other requests.
“It was really about how can we do more for the players, more for the fans, how can we offer them more modalities to play, how can we bring more partners into the game, how can we expand beyond the bounds of the traditional game,” EA CEO Andrew Wilson said when the split was first reported in 2022.
On FIFA’s side, Infantino gestured towards a more diverse gaming portfolio. “FIFA’s strategy is to ensure we can make the most of all future options and ensure a wide range of products and opportunities for gamers, fans, member associations and partners,” he said in 2022.
Beyond the Mythical Games partnership, FIFA has announced gaming tie-ups, integrations and activations of various sizes with Konami, Roblox, Rocket League and Football Manager developer Sports Interactive.
“We’re thrilled to partner with Mythical Games to launch FIFA Rivals, bringing football fans a mobile-first gaming experience that deepens their connection to the sport,” FIFA Secretary General Mattias Grafström said in a statement.
EA has maintained relationships with top leagues and clubs, giving it the rights to more than 17,000 pro players featured in the game. According to tracking data from Circana, EA Sports FC 25 broke soccer game revenue records after its release in September. Any new FIFA partner would likely sign additional deals to get more player and team IP in their game.
In late October, EA beat analyst projections in its announced Q2 earnings, driven by the success of FC and Madden titles as well as the return of EA College Football. EA stock has risen roughly 25% over the last six months.
Meanwhile, Infantino continues to work towards the record revenue he promised during his current term, which runs through 2027. The organization anticipates more hospitality, ticketing and broadcast revenues from the 2026 World Cup in North America. It is also relaunching the FIFA Club World Cup as a quadrennial competition starting in 2025.
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