Electronic Arts confirmed that there will be no Russian national team or Russian clubs in FIFA 23 to show solidarity with Ukraine.
FIFA 23 will be the final game in EA’s 20-year licensing partnership with FIFA, the international governing body for association football that has overseen international matches between 211 national associations. family.
The ongoing conflict in Ukraine continues to affect life both inside and outside the war-torn country, including the video game industry. Many game companies are showing support for Ukraine through philanthropic efforts or going out of business. For gamers in Russia it also means that they can no longer buy or play many of the biggest titles with companies like PlayStation. It looks like this trend will continue as Electronic Arts confirms FIFA 23 will not feature any Russian teams as a corporate backstop for Ukraine.
FIFA 23 will be the final game in EA’s 20-year licensing partnership with FIFA, the international governing body for association football that has overseen international matches between 211 national associations. family. The game will feature the iconic Ultimate Team and Career modes that players have come to expect, along with a huge roster of international teams with World Cup content to be released in a post-launch update. It will also feature the debut of women’s teams from across the US and Europe, joining women’s national teams that have been part of the series since FIFA 16.
Regarding the exclusion of Russian teams in FIFA 23, EA confirmed to Eurogamer that it will maintain the ban on Russian teams from FIFA games after they were all withdrawn from FIFA 22 as a show of affection. solidarity with Ukraine. The decision means that no Russian national team or Russian clubs will be able to play when the game is released, reflecting FIFA’s suspension of Russia previously issued in 2022 along with Belarus, a co-founder. close ally of Russia.
EA confirmed to Eurogamer that it will maintain its ban on Russian teams from FIFA games after they were all withdrawn from FIFA 22 as a show of solidarity with Ukraine.
EA told Eurogame in an official statement that “EA Sports stands in solidarity with the Ukrainian people and, like so many voices across the footballing world, calls for peace and an end to aggression in Ukraine.” EA did not comment on whether Belarusian teams would continue to be eliminated from the game, although it wouldn’t be surprising if they weren’t in FIFA 23.
The team ban also goes hand in hand with EA’s ongoing ban on sales of games in Russia, including highly profitable additional content like the Ultimate Team bundle, one of EA’s biggest sources of revenue. However, EA and many other companies that ban the sale of games do not cut off access from Russian players who purchased the game and any related content.
The Russian government has disapproved of these actions and has promoted resistance to these bans. They fully legalized crack gaming in March 2022 as part of their larger effort to fend off economic sanctions that have crippled much of the country. It was also recently reported that the Russian Ministry of Digital Development has approved the development of a new game engine to rival Unreal Engine 5.
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