EA Sports FC - The video game franchise has transformed into a major commercial platform for football competitions, with licensing deals that now register as strategic revenue streams for leagues worldwide after the launch of EA Sports FC 26 in September 2025, which sold 10 million copies in less than two weeks.
- In short: Projections place the Premier League's EA deal at about £81 million a year (≈ R$ 515 million), far above other European leagues.
Understand the dynamics: why leagues pay to appear
Licensing in EA Sports FC goes well beyond team names and badges: agreements include visual identity, trophies, commercial assets and eSports tie-ins that expand a league’s global footprint. This exposure is especially valuable in markets where broadcast rights are still developing.
Analysts note the shift followed EA’s split from FIFA and the rebrand to EA Sports FC, prompting the studio to negotiate directly with leagues and clubs — a strategy that turned in-game authenticity into a monetizable asset. See reporting from Reuters for coverage on the broader industry transition.
"Projections point to an agreement in the order of £81 million per year (around R$ 515 million) with the English league."
Context and impact: money, scale and strategy
According to the market estimates cited by MKT Esportivo and compiled from Reuters, SportBusiness and The Athletic, the Premier League leads licensing revenue in the EA ecosystem at roughly £81 million annually. LaLiga follows at US$30.5 million, while Bundesliga and Serie A are estimated between US$15–30 million and US$15–25 million respectively.
Ligue 1 is placed lower (US$10–20 million) and Liga Portugal is estimated at US$3–8 million. Combined with club and player rights (FIFPro) and continental competitions, industry estimates suggest EA’s annual spend on digital rights can exceed R$ 1.5 billion — underscoring how videogames have become a major distribution and monetization channel for professional football.
What do you think? Do these licensing payouts fairly reflect the commercial value leagues get from videogame exposure? For more analysis, check out our sports section.