The Largest Competition in FIFA History Will Exponentially Expand the
Global Audience With Accessible Competition and Features Top-Flight
Football Leagues and Clubs
REDWOOD CITY, Calif. & ZÜRICH--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
Today, Electronic
Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA) and Fédération
Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) announced the launch
of the EA SPORTS™ FIFA 18 Global Series* on The Road to the FIFA
eWorld Cup 2018, a landmark competition slated to bring global
excitement to millions of competitors and spectators. This expanded,
unified ecosystem between EA and FIFA exponentially increases the scale
of competitive FIFA year-over-year and kicks off Friday, November 3. The
competition will culminate at the showpiece event in the FIFA eWorld Cup
2018, where the winner will be crowned the undisputed world champion of EA
SPORTS FIFA 18 in August 2018.
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Electronic Arts and FIFA to Bring eSports to Millions Through the EA SPORTS FIFA 18 Global Series on the Road to the FIFA eWorld Cup 2018 (Photo: Business Wire)
"Last year was a pivotal achievement for competitive FIFA, engaging
millions of competitors and spectators through world football and global
competition," said Todd Sitrin, SVP and GM of the Competitive Gaming
Division at EA. "In partnership with FIFA, we're accelerating the growth
of competitive gaming through the EA SPORTS FIFA 18 Global Series
on The Road to the FIFA eWorld Cup 2018, producing more competition,
attracting more competitors and connecting with more fans than ever
before."
"Competitive FIFA is a global entertainment phenomenon that maximizes
the combined power of world football and competitive gaming in
unprecedented fashion," said Philippe Le Floc'h, Chief Commercial
Officer at FIFA. "We're thrilled to partner with EA in creating the EA
SPORTS FIFA 18 Global Series as the Road to the FIFA eWorld Cup 2018
will increase the ways millions of fans consume football."
The Road to the FIFA eWorld Cup 2018 is a multi-staged, global journey.
Competitors will qualify based on FIFA Ultimate Team™ (FUT) Champions**
Weekend League online performance and at blockbuster live qualifying
events throughout the year. Through the qualifying stage, EA and FIFA
will identify and invite the top-ranked 128 eligible competitors (64
competitors representing PlayStation®4 and 64 competitors representing
Xbox One) to advance to the EA SPORTS FIFA 18 Global Series
Playoffs, vying to be one of the 32 stars to qualify for the FIFA eWorld
Cup 2018. The winner of the FIFA eWorld Cup 2018 will be declared the
world champion.
The EA SPORTS FIFA 18 Global Series magnifies the ways
competitors of all levels can compete through both online competition
and at inimitable, industry-moving live events. In online play, all
competitors will first compete in FUT Champions weekend leagues as the
globally engaging, worldly popular competitive mode returns.
Accompanying the fun found in online competitive play are a variety of
blockbuster live events ensuring maximum opportunity for all to qualify
for the EA SPORTS FIFA 18 Global Series Playoffs - a sample of
competitive formats in EA SPORTS FIFA 18 include:
-
FIFA Ultimate Team Champions Cups - These mass entry
tournaments kickoff first through the popular FUT Champions online
mode with the top competitors qualifying for two major live
tournaments - held in January and April.
-
FIFA eClub World Cup - An all-star tournament pitting
world-class EA SPORTS FIFA 18 competitors signed to pro teams
against one another.
-
Licensed Qualifying Competitions - Notable third-party
competitive gaming organizations and brands will host marquee events
offering qualifying spots for the EA SPORTS FIFA 18 Global
Series Playoffs. Our third-party qualifying tournaments will offer
three times the competitive opportunity for our players to compete
year-over-year.
-
Official League Partner Qualifying Competitions - Competitors
can represent their favorite real-life club through official league
competitions and specific details on how leagues will be involved to
be available soon.
EA has the mission to make stars of all its competitors by making
competitive gaming accessible to all. Quickly becoming a leading
entertainment brand in competitive gaming, with top-selling videogame
franchises, award-winning interactive technology and cross-platform
digital experiences, EA's competitive experiences ignite the passion of
millions of competitors and spectators through competition around the
world.
For more details on the entire EA SPORTS FIFA 18 Global Series,
please visit www.FUTChampions.com.
*Eligibility restrictions apply. See Official
Rules for details. Final terms and structure subject to change.
**Online qualification for FUT Champions is only available to eligible
players on Xbox One and PlayStation 4. No other platforms are supported
for qualification.
About Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA) is a global leader in digital interactive
entertainment. The Company develops and delivers games, content and
online services for Internet-connected consoles, mobile devices and
personal computers. EA has more than 300 million registered competitors
around the world.
In fiscal year 2017, EA posted GAAP net revenue of $4.8 billion.
Headquartered in Redwood City, California, EA is recognized for a
portfolio of critically acclaimed, high-quality brands such as The
Sims™, EA SPORTS™ FIFA, Battlefield™, Need for Speed™, Dragon Age™ and
Plants vs. Zombies™. More information about EA is available at www.ea.com/news.
EA SPORTS, Ultimate Team, The Sims, Dragon Age, Plants vs. Zombies,
Battlefield and Battlefield 1 are trademarks of Electronic Arts Inc. and
its subsidiaries are the property of their respective owners and used
with permission.. "PlayStation" is a registered trademark of Sony
Interactive Entertainment Inc.
View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20171027005136/en/
Electronic Arts Inc.
Travis Varner, 650-628-2717
EA Manager,
Strategic Communications
tvarner@ea.com
Source: Electronic Arts Inc.
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