Konami has taken over from EA as the esports partner for FIFA

The global football organization, FIFA, has teamed up with Konami to continue the FIFAe World Cup for esports. This collaboration will utilize Konami’s free-to-play game, eFootball.

This event was formerly managed alongside Electronic Arts, but the partnership dissolved in 2022 after a longstanding collaboration of 29 years, as detailed here.

Through this new alliance, this year will feature two tournaments via eFootball: one for mobile and another for console platforms. The qualifying rounds for these events start today, culminating in the crowning of champions at the conclusion of each tournament.

This inaugural competition under the new arrangement will see the participation of 18 nations in the final rounds. These countries include Argentina, Brazil, Costa Rica, England, France, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea Republic, Malaysia, Morocco, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Thailand, and Türkiye.

eFootball, which replaced Konami’s previous Pro Evolution Soccer franchise, has seen substantial growth, with the game hitting 700 million downloads globally since shifting to a free-to-play model in 2019.

Koji Kobayashi, a senior executive officer at Konami, stated, "At Konami, we have consistently embraced the challenge of advancing in football simulation and esports. This partnership with FIFAe provides a new opportunity for promoting eFootball."

Expressing gratitude to FIFA for the opportunity, Kobayashi added, "We eagerly anticipate the kickoff of the FIFAe World Cup, sharing the excitement and enjoyment with our global player base."

Romy Gai, FIFA’s chief business officer, remarked, "We are thrilled to collaborate with Konami. Our shared vision seeks to advance football's global reach and give players a platform to demonstrate their abilities. We are dedicated to creating an inclusive ecosystem that welcomes diverse communities into FIFAe competitions."

Earlier this year, FIFA also indicated its interest in other gaming alliances by announcing a FIFAe World Cup event featuring Rocket League.