Electronic Arts has announced that it is renewing its collaboration agreement with the FIFPro to continue offering “the greatest soccer experience for players.” The agreement with the international association of professional footballers, which covers thousands of players, has also served to remind the statement that EA Sports games are the only ones in which you can play the game. Champions League, Libertadores, Premier, Bundesliga or LaLiga Santander among others. Therefore, EA continues to strengthen its position at the licensing level to show that it may not need to keep the FIFA name in its saga.
“FIFPro will continue to be an important ally as we create future next-generation EA Sports soccer experiences for players around the world,” said David Jackson, VP EA Sports Brand, omitting, incidentally, the word FIFA, which has accompanied the saga since its inception. Jackson himself has emphasized the importance and “immersion” of being able to “use the best leagues, teams and talents in the real world.”
On the other hand, the Statutory Director of FIFPro assures in the statement to be “tremendously satisfied to be able to extend our relationship with EA Sports, a true ally committed to creating the best interactive experience for soccer fans around the world. “
FIFPro is not to the liking of all players: the Ibra case
The agreement with FIFPro has recalled an episode that took place less than a year ago, in December 2020, when Ibrahimovic criticized the use of his image in the game because they are rights “based on individual image rights” and not collective, according to his position. In a post on Twitter he asked who they had bought the rights for his face to appear in the title: “Not at FIFPro, because they haven’t told us. Not at Milan either, because they haven’t told us, and neither have they told me. you have bought from me. From whom then? ” At the time, EA already defended itself saying that they had an agreement with FIFPro, which is the global representative of professional players and that it “partners with licensors to negotiate agreements that benefit players and unions.”
Agreement … in full debate on the name FIFA
The arrival of this agreement and its announcement does not seem to be accidental. A few days ago it was known that the company was considering abandoning the FIFA name and renaming the brand, at the same time that the EA Sports FC title was registered in the United Kingdom. The debate revolves around whether it is necessary to maintain the name of the international body when the series goes far beyond the competitions offered by FIFA, in addition to a rights issue that has an economic cost. The reality, today, is that EA has agreements with more than 300 football licenses, among which are the main federations and players, so the internal debate in the company can be a measure of pressure before the renewal of the agreement , which ends in December 2022.
Source| Bussiness Wire
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