Manchester City and Gen.G have unveiled a co-branded esports team, GEN CITY, to represent the English football club and the global esports organisation in FC Online tournaments.
Gen.G is no stranger to success in FC Online esports. In 2025, it won three tournaments, including the FC Pro Masters, where it defeated Advice ESPORTS in the Grand Final to take home $52,000 (~£38,802) in prize money and a place at the FCP Champions Cup.
For future tournaments, the organisation will now compete under the GEN CITY name, starting with the FCP Champions Cup 2025 event set to take place in August.
Released in May 2018, FC Online is a free-to-play, online football title developed by EA Spearhead and published by Nexon, Garena and Tencent across Asia. In 2022, the title was the eighth most-popular esports title according to a report from SeoulSpace.
Manchester City has partnered with Gen.G since 2023, when the club and the organisation joined forces to host a range of activations. In 2024, the two parties extended their partnership to host activations during the League of Legends World Championship, which took place in London.
The Growth Of FC Online
The formation of GEN CITY comes at a time of growth for the FC Online esports scene. The FC Online Super Champions League Spring event earlier this year recorded peak viewing figures of 102,670, making it the second most-watched FC Online event in history.
The title also forms part of the FC Pro esports circuit, alongside EA Sports FC, EA’s other football game franchise. Previously titled FIFA Online 4, the FC Online brand arrived following the end of EA and FIFA’s licensing agreement in December 2022.
Alongside Gen.G, several esports organisations based in Southeast Asia also field FC Online rosters. The likes of T1, KT Rolster, Dplus and DRX compete in regional and international events.
