Peter Moore explains FIFA name change talks is EA’s only option

Former EA chief and Liverpool CEO Peter Moore has opened up about the news that FIFA 22 might be the last of its kind, with EA SPORTS considering a name change. 

Moore left his role at Electronic Arts in February 2017, as he tried his hand at running one of the biggest football clubs in the world, Liverpool FC. However, the 66-year-old has never left his passion for gaming behind entirely, regularly commenting on happenings in the space.

On October 7, one of the biggest talking points in the FIFA community emerged, as the developers of the series released a shock statement claiming they are considering renaming the franchise. The agreement between EA and FIFA is worth approximately $150 million per year.

The statement reads: “We’re also exploring the idea of renaming our global EA SPORTS football games. This means we’re reviewing our naming rights agreement with FIFA, which is separate from all our other official partnerships and licenses across the football world.”

Since then, it has been discovered that EA have tried to patent EA SPORTS FC, which could be a potential name for the future. This was registered in the European Union and in the United Kingdom, according to a New York Times report.

Former EA chief talks potential FIFA name change

Many players have found themselves wondering why this is happening so suddenly, especially when the brand has become so iconic over the last 22 years.

During an interview with the Times newspaper, Peter Moore was asked about the situation.

While he’s no longer an active member of the corporate team, he did say this: “I don’t recall them ever putting out a statement saying we’re in negotiations on a renewal of the license. That’s clearly sending a little bit of a signal.”

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EA have enjoyed some tremendously successful years as official partners of FIFA, with just Ultimate Team alone worth $1.6 billion last year – largely thanks to their FIFA Points system and FUT pack microtransactions strategy.

The Times has also revealed that FIFA is considering also selling naming rights to other non-football games, such as Fortnite, for collaborations, which would take away from EA’s exclusivity partnership, Moore says.

“I’m going to say, ‘Wait a second. We have literally spent hundreds of millions of dollars building this and you’re telling me that Epic Games can come in and get a license to the name that we have built and that we have put front and center and that has become synonymous with games? Then yeah, I’m negotiating and I’m fighting that.”

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In theory, this could result in a number of resolutions. On one hand, EA could walk away from the table – saving $150 million per year for doing so – and rebrand its product with a high market share intact. Or alternatively, this could be a game of chess that’s just been put into the public domain.

One thing is for certain, though, and that’s EA are preparing for life without that license.