EA’s partnership with Serie A means these teams will not appear in rival football game eFootball (what was once PES). The deal also includes the authentic integration of Serie A into FIFA Ultimate Team’s Team of the Week and FUT Serie A Team Of The Season promotions, and an all new EA SPORTS Player of the Month award. The partnership runs both ways. EA Sports is now the main sponsor of the Italian Supercup, which is renamed EA Sports Supercup beginning with the 2022-23 season. EA provided Eurogamer with a list of the 16 licensed Serie A teams in FIFA 22:
Bologna F.C. 1909 Cagliari Calcio Empoli F.C. ACF Fiorentina Genoa C.F.C. Hellas Verona F.C. FC Internazionale Milano A.C. Milan S.S.C. Napoli U.S. Salernitana 1919 U.C. Sampdoria U.S. Sassuolo Calcio Spezia Calcio Torino F.C. Udinese Calcio Venezia F.C.
Konami currently has four Serie A teams flying under its exclusive banner, so FIFA 22 rounds out Serie A with Piemonte Calcio (Juventus), Bergamo Calcio (Atalanta), Latium (Lazio), and Roma FC (Roma). (Napoli is exclusive to eFootball from next season.) The names and likenesses of authentic players from all 20 Serie A clubs will continue to be playable throughout FIFA 22, though. “EA SPORTS and Lega Serie A are entering into a multi-year agreement which allows for Serie A clubs to be authentically represented in-game, providing that the rights of those clubs are available and not currently contractually held exclusively by another party,” EA said. “EA SPORTS is respectful of pre-existing relationships that certain clubs have with third parties, but is equally committed to further growing its presence in Italian football both now and in the future.” EA Sports has deeper pockets than Konami when it comes to dishing out for football exclusives, and it enjoys a vice-like grip on the Premier League. Still, Konami continues to snap at its heels with some deals of its own.
