Only a few days remain before the “FIFA era” officially ends: the nearly 30-year partnership between EA Sports and FIFA will be severed in just over a week.

A major turning point for gaming’s biggest sports franchise. A few entries ago, Electronic Arts walked away from Gianni Infantino’s governing body, declined a new licensing deal, and rebranded the series as EA Sports FC. One last link still bound the two — and that, too, is about to be cut.

On October 30, FIFA 23’s online servers will go dark for good. It’s the final game to carry the FIFA name; after 29 years and 42 releases, the shutters come down. Beyond the mainline series, there were multiple World Cup editions, an MMO, the FIFA Street sub-series, and mobile titles.

EA Sports, for its part, hasn’t skipped a beat: FC continues to top annual sales charts, while Ultimate Team hums along as a recurring-revenue machine. In fact, you could quip that this franchise is a big reason why Electronic Arts could be “sold for a mere few million dollars.”

FIFA, meanwhile, announced plans to lean harder into its own brand. But the debut of FIFA Heroes — a mascot-driven title meant to warm up fans ahead of the 2026 World Cup — hasn’t been the triumphant return many hoped for.

As for the latest entry, EA FC 26, our takeaway was this: “Offline modes are trending the right way (with some tuning still needed), and Ultimate Team is doing the same despite issues like the progression curve — yet it remains tremendously demanding for players. On the pitch, the feel is very positive, with Hypermotion V looking well oiled.”

Source: 3DJuegos