The FIFA brand is “four letters in a box” according to Electronic Arts

In October last year, the conflict broke out between Electronic Arts and the FIFA organization over the licensing of one of the most popular games in the world, and according to new information obtained by the VGC portal, the relationship is practically broken. VGC accessed testimony from Electronic Arts CEO Andrew Wilson during an internal meeting in November, in which he said that the FIFA brand “means more as a video game than as a football organization” and the agreement limits the possibility of expanding the game. As we look to the future, we want to grow the franchise and, ironically, the FIFA license has been an impediment to that,” Wilson said. “Our players tell us they want more cultural and commercial brands relevant to them in their markets, more rooted in the game. Brands like Nike. But because FIFA has a relationship with Adidas, we can’t do that.”
During the meeting, the executive also referred to the limitations it imposes in terms of game options, explaining that users demand more game modes beyond those of 11 against 11, but the license only covers certain categories:
“Players want us not to expand the digital ecosystem even further, but the FIFA license has prevented us from doing a lot of that.” According to his interpretation, the only thing they receive from FIFA in the years without a World Cup are “four letters on the front of the box in a world where most people no longer see the box because they buy the game in digital format”, and they need a certain level of freedom to be creative, innovative and being able to experiment in the market. Wilson said he spoke to FIFA President Gianni Infantino in October and explained that the conflict is not only about not wanting to pay more than they think the license is worth, but also about the ability to offer good experiences and games to fans on a regular basis. He finally questioned whether they will be able to reach an agreement, and if not they are willing to change the name of the game and “take control of the global ecosystem” that they will generate. Ironically it is likely that we generate more profit, more fans and more acceptance over time.”he concluded.

In October, when the details of the agreement between FIFA and the company became known, it was revealed that the organization intended $1 billion for the use of the World Cup license every four years on top of about $3 billion for the rights over the next decade. The current contract signed in 2013 was for 1500 million dollars. It is no coincidence that on October 1, the same day as the launch of FIFA 22, Electronic Arts applied for the trademark “EA Sports FC” before the Intellectual Property Office of the United Kingdom and days later did the same in front of the body that corresponds to the European Union.
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Original source in Spanish