In what could be the publisher’s final dance with the FIFA World Cup, EA Sports correctly predicted Argentina as world champions and upped their last four predictions.
The World Cup simulation, run once unscientific FIFA 23called the winner but missed on a few minor points. On Sunday, in the real World Cup, Argentina beat France on penalties after a crazy 3-3 stalemate in regular time and extra time. EA’s prediction had Brazil as the second victim (although it had France third). And Lionel Messi didn’t win the Golden Boot for most tournament goals because Fifa predicted, although it took a hat-trick for the ages in the final by Frenchman Kylian Mbappe to surpass Messi’s 11 goals in the tournament.
Messi, 35, picked up the World Cup Golden Ball (Best Player) as FIFA 23 scheduled for November 8, making history as the only two-time winner of this award. So we’ll say EA Sports got the overall result here. Or another term the Yanks only use when talking about football, like they do with theoretical agreement.
EA Sports correctly picked Spain in 2010 (with 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa); Germany in 2014 (with 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil) and France in 2018 (with FIFA 18).
Electronic Arts and FIFA will part ways after the latest edition of the global bestseller, ending a 30-year partnership. The next version, expected in early fall, will be called EA Sports FC and will not bear any FIFA marks or symbols.
They wouldn’t be needed for four years, really, when the next World Cup tournament is in North America. FIFA in May announcement that it was “engaging with publishers, studios and investors on the development of [a] new major sim football title for 2024.”
