FIFA Ends EA Partnership for Exclusive Netflix Gaming Deal

Key Takeaways

1. Netflix will launch an officially licensed FIFA football game in summer 2026, coinciding with the World Cup.
2. The game will be available at no extra cost to Netflix subscribers and playable on smart TVs, streaming devices, and mobile phones.
3. FIFA’s partnership with Netflix marks a shift after ending its long-term collaboration with EA Sports in 2022.
4. The game aims to attract a broad audience with easy-to-use gameplay, focusing on quick matches for casual gamers.
5. This partnership is a strategic move for both FIFA and Netflix to test the FIFA brand’s value in gaming and expand Netflix’s gaming offerings.

Netflix is set to transform the FIFA World Cup 2026 into a gaming experience. The streaming service has revealed an officially licensed FIFA football game that will be available on its Netflix Games platform. This game, created by Delphi Interactive, is scheduled to launch in the summer of 2026, coinciding with the tournament taking place in the US, Canada, and Mexico. Instead of being a separate purchase, this title will be included in the existing Netflix Games library.

Accessible Gameplay

The upcoming game will be offered at no additional charge for Netflix subscribers and is built to function on smart TVs, streaming devices, and mobile phones. On televisions, players will utilize their smartphones as controllers, similar to other Netflix party games. There will also be a native version available for both iOS and Android platforms. Netflix and FIFA are promoting this project as an easy-to-use football simulation featuring quick matches that allow for both solo and online gaming, rather than a complex simulation specifically for hardcore console gamers.

A New Era for FIFA

For nearly 30 years, FIFA depended on EA Sports to produce its yearly football games, but that collaboration concluded in 2022 due to disputes over licensing fees and the future use of the FIFA name. EA retained the rights to its leagues, teams, and players, rebranding the series as EA Sports FC. Meanwhile, FIFA found the freedom to license its brand to others, and an exclusive agreement with Netflix allows FIFA to showcase its name to hundreds of millions of subscribers all at once, offering a simpler, TV-oriented game that aligns with the World Cup and FIFA’s goal to “reach billions” of fans.

A Strategic Move

This partnership represents FIFA’s first significant football simulation game since the end of its long-term connection with EA’s FIFA series, and it serves as a crucial test of how much value the standalone FIFA name still has in the gaming world. For Netflix, this marks another advancement in expanding its gaming offerings beyond just mobile tie-ins. This follows other projects like 007: First Light and its increasing collection of TV-playable games that leverage smartphones as controllers. The company aims to position the FIFA title as one of its flagship games in its endeavor to make gaming on Netflix as commonplace as watching a series.

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