For years, the FIFA and the World Cup 26 license used to feel like the ultimate prize in football gaming. You knew what came with it. Official presentation packages, real stadium branding, authentic tournament visuals, licensed national teams, the famous World Cup typography, and all the little details that made the event feel “real” inside the game.
While this was enjoyed by one single game the most, I would say that back in the EA Sports FIFA era, World Cup content almost felt untouchable. Every four years, it was the event that made you see the shiny trophy and the event content as the best. I still love the Prime Icons cards of the World Cup 22 update, the shiny Bergkamp card, for example.
Now that the 2026 FIFA World Cup is just a couple of months away, the situation feels strangely different, and if I were to be honest, it is kind of shocking.
The end of EA and FIFA changed everything
Recent reports confirm that none of the biggest football video games currently, EA Sports FC, KONAMI’s eFootball franchise, Dream League Soccer, and even the high-potential recently soft-launched UFL Mobile, have secured the official FIFA World Cup 2026 license.
It isn’t a surprise that all of these titles will surely be working on having the World Cup mode, maybe a knockout competition where you compete by choosing the National Team of your choice, and then win the trophy, and on the road, some rewards. See, the thrill of the knockout events is still the same, but the authenticity is always preferred, isn’t it?
Now, when I understand all of this, a question is on my mind. Is the authentic FIFA World Cup license still worth chasing anymore? Are the advantages not worth it for these big titles to give it a try?
The answer starts with what happened back in 2022. That was when EA Sports and FIFA ended their long partnership, and FIFA 23 was EA FC 24 the next year, following the rebranding. For almost 30 years, the two sides had worked together since 1993, and events under FIFA were presented as a huge extravaganza.
EA walked away with most of the club licenses and player rights through new deals, but FIFA was suddenly left without its biggest gaming partner. The governing body had to start looking for someone new to carry the official FIFA name and also the World Cup branding.
Why the FIFA World Cup license is no longer a “simple” deal
At first, the rumours pointed straight at Take-Two Interactive, the company behind NBA 2K. In early 2024, there was serious talk of a full FIFA-branded console game, maybe even FIFA 2K25, launching that same year. Fans got excited. A realistic simulation with the official license sounded like the perfect rival to EA Sports FC.
But Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick quickly shut down the hype. He explained that the FIFA license is “not that simple.” Unlike deals for the NFL or NBA, the FIFA name alone does not hand over players, teams, or leagues.
Those rights still have to be negotiated one by one with national federations, player unions, and club organisations. Zelnick said his company was happy with its current sports games and saw no rush to jump into something so complicated. The dream of a 2K FIFA title quietly faded back into rumour land.
The search for FIFA’s next big partner
By December 2025, the spotlight moved to KONAMI. Reports said the Japanese company was the top contender for the FIFA license. Some sources even claimed the deal could become a long-term partnership, not just a one-tournament thing. It looked promising, since KONAMI had already been working closely with FIFA’s esports division since 2024.
eFootball was the official platform for the FIFAe World Cup, and that partnership had been extended all the way to 2026. They ran the Challenger Series and in-game events. For a while, it felt like KONAMI was the natural choice to finally bring the full official World Cup branding to a major title.
Yet here we are in early May 2026, and nothing has been announced. eFootball will likely be preparing only generic World Cup modes. If a major licensing agreement had been closed, many expected movement by now, especially given how much preparation usually goes into World Cup-related marketing campaigns and in-game integrations.
As for EA Sports FC, it still has a massive pool of licensed players and teams despite losing the FIFA name. I recently read that EA currently has 30 men’s national teams licensed, though only 19 are part of the World Cup group stage. That leaves obvious gaps if the company wanted to recreate all 48 nations authentically, but more licenses are reportedly coming.
But amidst all of this, do you think the FIFA branding is something the players are looking for? Because, for example, I would say as an EA FC competition, KONAMI is going to be the biggest benefactor of the FIFA branding, because it is missing out on a lot of licensing, we still have fake team names in the game, which I feel is the only drag down.
That missing piece is exactly why the license could still matter a lot for KONAMI. The official FIFA World Cup 2026 badge would instantly fix that for the tournament and give the game a credibility boost that no amount of free Epic cards can match. The same logic applies to Dream League Soccer and UFL Mobile. If they are trying to cement their position in the level of the two big guns, they can definitely benefit from the same.
The FIFA collaborations have yet to see the bright advantage
While we are discussing which game could pick up the FIFA licensing, the governing board itself seems to have chosen a different strategy this time. Instead of handing the full rights to one big console or mobile partner, it has been spreading the brand across smaller projects for the last two years.
On the games side, mobile players already have FIFA Rivals with official branding, and the upcoming FIFA Heroes, a fun 5-a-side arcade game, set to arrive this month. Another anticipated experience will be the FIFA x Netflix Games title developed and published by Delphi Interactive. Roblox also featured it with the rebranding of the Gamefam football experience.
It feels like FIFA is testing the waters with many smaller deals rather than betting everything on one long-term partner as it did with EA for so many years. Yet, it stings a little as we won’t be getting the authentic experience anywhere for now, at least this edition of the World Cup.
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