“I think we all dreamed of playing in FIFA when we were little and playing with ourselves. And that the dream has come true is huge and makes us very happy. A giant step for women’s football,” laughs the Swiss international Alisha Lehmann in an interview at the 2022 FIFA Women’s Summit.
The 23-year-old striker is under contract with the English professional club Aston Villa. She discovered her love for football when she was a child. She eventually came to the island through the BSC YB Women. And even if she has little time to play video and computer games by her own statement, she still squeezes one or two games of “FIFA 23” into her schedule.
Women’s football plays an increasingly important role in EA Sports’ successful sports series. This is also evident from the fact that in addition to PSG star Kylian Mbappé, Canadian international Samantha Kerr also graces the cover of the offshoot this year. But there’s more: EA Sports is committed to – and investing in – women’s football.
Attention to women’s football
In the United Kingdom, women’s football has long since gone mainstream. However, this is not the case everywhere. Alisha Lehmann also acknowledges in an interview that women’s football is growing worldwide, but that there is also a huge gap between women’s and men’s football. On the one hand, she sees the lower financial resources as a problem, on the other hand, the significantly smaller fan base. “But I think we get a lot of attention with FIFA. I almost always play with the women anyway,” she explained.
Those responsible at EA Sports are aware of the reach of the “FIFA” series and want to use it to draw more attention to women’s football. Speaking at the FIFA Women’s Summit, Andrea Hopelain, Senior Vice President of Brand at EA Sports, explained that by reaching the youngest audience in the sport, “FIFA” can also introduce new fans to football. Through the game they not only get to know the sport, but also their talents. She summarized this approach: “I hope we can continue to be this beacon that makes new fans aware of this sport and its talents. That’s how the sport evolves.”
$11 million for women’s soccer
The figures recently showed that acceptance of women’s football had already increased with “FIFA 23”. While only four percent of players in “FIFA 22” tried out for the women’s teams, in the current offshoot it was three times that number. So the trend is clear and needs to be further supported by funding and partnerships.
However, it is not just about symbolic actions or innovations in the game, EA Sports digs deep into the pockets of women’s football and awarded the “Starting XI Fund”. This is intended to support talents, teams, leagues and in-game experiences. There is also an accompanying internship program that not only inspires young women from all walks of life, but also makes it easier for them to enter the world of football. This program is being promoted together with partners and will be launched with an investment of 11 million US dollars.
New content for «FIFA 23»
EA Sports also goes full throttle on the virtual field when it comes to women’s football. “FIFA 23” had a fairly manageable number of women’s clubs, teams and leagues at its inception. Certainly compared to the licensing data of the gentlemen, the selection was almost infinitely small. After all, the women were already allowed to play games like VOLTA.
For 2023, EA Sports is expanding tournament options. First, the UEFA Women’s Champions League was announced. In addition to the league itself, this mode also integrates a whole host of new teams such as Juventus Women, Real Madrid Femenino, Chelsea Women, Manchester City Women, Olympique Lyonnais Féminine or Paris Saint-Germain Féminine. The KO stage of the tournament will be integrated into «FIFA 23». EA Sports works together with the streaming channel DAZN for this. Together they will be partners for the broadcast of the UEFA Women’s Champions League, so that EA Sports will be part of the shows and also the DAZN YouTube channel. We will find out exactly what that will look like next year.
The Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, which will take place from July 20 to August 20, 2023, will also be included in an update. As a result, the successful sports game will gain two major, heavily licensed tournament options over the course of the year ahead. Women’s football finds a new home at EA Sports. “FIFA 23” is just the beginning.
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