FIFA and EA have decided to extend their long-running video game licensing agreement for soccer games to 2022, the companies say.
The new extension to the agreement means that EA will continue retaining the exclusive rights to develop videogames with the FIFA license, and this also includes titles based on the FIFA World Cup.
“EA SPORTS released the first FIFA-branded football game in 1993, and 20 years later our partnership with FIFA continues to be very strong,” says Andrew Wilson, Executive Vice President and Head of EA SPORTS, in a release. “Our franchise has become the benchmark for quality and innovation in the sports videogame genre, and we look forward to many more years of connecting with consumers around the world with our games carrying the prestigious FIFA name.”
Fans will not be surprised by the fresh extension to the agreement considering the continuing success of the license via EA in recent years.
“Our relationship with EA SPORTS is of high importance to FIFA” says Jerome Valcke, FIFA Secretary General. “The FIFA videogames are a key experiential component in our work to communicate the FIFA brand and its values all over the world. This is highlighted by the 2.5 million football fans that have competed in this year’s FIFA Interactive World Cup, which is just one example of the power of our partnership with EA”.
Although EA has had a successful managed the FIFA franchise, the company decided not to take anything for granted and show some numbers to remind everyone about the franchise’s popularity.
Recently, the company announced that a massive 14.5 million copies of FIFA 13 have been sold to date, a 30 percent increase over FIFA 12 in the prior year. The total revenue acquired from the digital rights for the game is up by 94 percent compared to last year, totaling to $200 million.
Moreover, with FIFA Online and FIFA World Class Soccer sales also present to support the numbers, the total FIFA digital net revenue was $350 for fiscal 2013.
EA, as of now, has already announced the upcoming FIFA 14 for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PC, and other next generation consoles.