Game developer Electronic Arts (EA) has unveiled its roadmap for the FIFA 23 esports ecosystem.
One of the biggest changes coming to the EA SPORTS FIFA 23 Global Series (FGS) is the introduction of a new flagship tournament series, the EA SPORTS Cup.
Starting October 17th, players representing esports organisations and traditional football clubs will compete in 2v2 competitions across three months of fixtures.
Manchester City Esports, Paris Saint-Germain Esports, Fnatic and Complexity, amongst others, are set to compete in the EA SPORTS Cup, which culminates January 16th-21st. The Cup will crown a champion and determine two teams to advance to the FIFAe Club World Cup 2023.
1v1 competition will also return via the Road to the FIFAe World Cup 2023, starting with EASPORTS FIFA 23 Ultimate Edition’s September 27th worldwide release.
In addition, over 30 football league partners and confederations will hold tournaments as part of FGS 2023, including the ePremier League, Virtual Bundesliga, eLaLiga Santander, eLigue 1 Uber Eats, eMLS, eSerie A TIM, KPN eDivisie, CONMEBOL eLibertadores, and the eChampions League.
The FGS 2023 online qualifiers and majors are officially presented by PlayStation. Similar to last year’s FGS season, FGS 2023 will be played exclusively on Playstation 5 consoles.
Sam Turkbas, EA SPORTS FIFA Esports Commissioner, said: “The FGS’s collection of the world’s top stars, top esports organizations, top football clubs, leagues and confederations will showcase the next generation of esports on the Road to the FIFAe World Cup 2023.
“Now when you combine the star power with a robust ecosystem giving players around the world the opportunity to become the next big thing, this is confidently the biggest year in franchise history.”
The FIFAe World Cup 2022 registered 149,000 peak viewers according to Esports Charts, a 95,000 decrease from the 2019 FIFAe World Cup.
