‘Utterly miscalculated’: FIFA’s ‘$1.7b own goal’ sparks game revolution — without ‘jumping the shark’

AMSTERDAM — For 30 years, when you heard the abbreviation FIFA, you probably didn’t think of the sometimes ethically questionable organisation - you thought of a video game.

The connection between game developer EA’s long-running football series and the governing body was immense; and yet it only took one strange decision to sever it.

A little under two years ago, the New York Times reported FIFA wanted around $US1.2 billion ($AU1.75b) for every four-year World Cup period - for the name, the logo and to reproduce the tournament digitally.

It was an enormous jump from the existing $US150 million per year rights deal, trying to double what was reportedly the biggest single agreement for FIFA’s coffers.

It’d be wrong to say the decision for EA was simple; the brand name had incredible cut-through in the market. But the financial benefits are obvious.

“It is a massive own goal by FIFA and will cost them about $221AUD million a year for doing very little,” Peter Moore, a long-time gaming executive including the former head of EA Sports, told The Times.

“It’s perhaps the most expensive own goal in football history, and they were pushing to get a lot more money that they neither justified nor deserved.

“That was placing EA in a position where they were saying, ‘Do we need this – what do they provide for us?’ They already had all the deals the fans look for – Premier League, La Liga, Bundesliga, UEFA. You only get the World Cup every four years – fans care about clubs and players.

“FIFA at that point completely and utterly miscalculated.”

Given EA still has an enormous list of rights deals with teams, players and leagues, it has effectively just rolled into the new era - with some twists to the old formula - by officially