Few words more quickly evoke decades-old video game franchises quite like “FIFA.” It ranks in the echelons of “Mario” and “Sonic,” “Doom” and “Half-Life,” “WoW” and “Madden.” But EA Sports seems ready, willing even, to change the name of its best-selling series.
EA Sports Group General Manager Cam Weber released a statement on Thursday talking about the “future of football.” In it, he made a not-so-humble brag about early sales numbers for FIFA 22 before trying to give lip service to fans about improving the game series.
Then he dropped this little bombshell.
“As we look ahead, we’re also exploring the idea of renaming our global EA SPORTS football games,” the statement read. “This means we’re reviewing our naming rights agreement with FIFA, which is separate from all our other official partnerships and licenses across the football world.”
What does this mean? Why is EA Sports renaming FIFA?
EA Sports isn’t the first developer reconsidering the name of its soccer video game. Konami recently rebranded Pro Evolution Soccer (long known as PES) to eFootball, switching to a free-to-play model in attempts to dethrone EA’s behemoth. Football Manager isn’t likely to change its name anytime soon, but it’s got a pretty solid name that’s both unambiguous and inclusive. Similarly, there have been talks about renaming EA Sports’ NFL franchise “Madden” since most kids these days don’t even know who John Madden is.
By why now for EA? Why give up the name that is essentially synonymous with its soccer series? I’ve personally always considered “FIFA” to be one of those words that changes meaning based on inflection and context: used with joy and excitement the word refers to the video game franchise; used with hate and aversion it refers to the governing body. It seems like an odd choice for EA to just give that name recognition up.
The reasoning might have been hinted at in Weber’s statement, saying EA Sports is reviewing its naming rights agreement with FIFA. This appears to be a conspicuous shot at FIFA the organization that EA Sports is willing to give up the name of the series if EA can’t get a good naming rights deal done.
Or perhaps EA Sports just wants to distance itself from football’s governing body. It’s not like FIFA (the organization) has been seen as a positive force in the world over the last decade, what with the rampant corruption, acquiescence of a Qatar World Cup and attempts to change to a biennial World Cup.
My guess is it’s got everything to do with money. EA Sports will continue using “FIFA” until it becomes financially better to stop paying the naming rights and change the name.
What other names could EA Sports choose for a new soccer franchise? Here are some options for the next edition.
What EA Sports Should Call Its Soccer Franchise If Not FIFA
- EA Sports Football 23
- Football Live 23
- Concacaf 23
- Taylor Twellman Soccer 23
- Skate 4
- Soccer 23
- Women’s Soccer 23
- Corruption 23
- UEFACONMEBOLCONCACAFCAFAFCOFC 23
- MLS2K23
- Mia Hamm 23
- MessNaldo 23
- Säkər 23
- NWSL 23
- And It’s Tevez With His Bulldog-Like Approach 23
- The MLS Soccer Video Game 23
- Pace Game 23
- Saudi Consortium 23
- Paul Riley Football 23
- Derek Rae Football 23
- John Madden Soccer 23
- Football Video Game 23
- Soccer Video Game 23
- Pro Evolution Soccer 23
- Pete Burridge Soccers 23
- F Football 23
- Footy McFoot Face 23
- Afif 23
- Qatar 23
- Leisure Suit Larry 23
Which is your favorite? What should the FIFA series be called? Let us know in the Facebook comments.
Also of note in Weber’s statement on Thursday was a mention of the women’s game. While FIFA was one of the first to include women in its game (but not the first), the last few years have seen so few additions that it’s now become insulting to women’s soccer fans. But Weber claimed WoSo is on the mind of those at EA Sports.
“We’re here to create the best experiences for football fans everywhere,” Weber said. “To do that, we start by listening to our players. We hear consistently that what matters most is growing the global community, creating innovative football experiences across new platforms, a commitment to every level of the sport including grassroots, and accelerating the elevation of the women’s game. As a result, we have a clear vision for the future of football.”
It's hard to really take EA Sports at its word at this point, but we can hope.
