After a 30-year partnership with the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) came to an end due to financial disagreements, Electronic Arts (EA) Sports has renamed their annual football game from FIFA to Football Club, starting with EA FC24 this year. Matching this name change, EA Sports has made substantial changes to the game itself, including new gameplay features and advanced animation technology. Yet, the most notable change is the inclusion of female players in its fantasy game mode, Ultimate Team.
The Ultimate Team has been one of the most popular modes within the previous FIFA games, where gamers could build unique teams with players from different clubs and nationalities. Now, by featuring female players in this mode, gamers can mix genders in their teams as well.
The initial reactions of EA FC24 Ultimate Team from gaming communities on social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook are mostly hostile. A common opinion is that the mode has lost its realism after female and male players have become able to play with and against each other on the same pitch. Many gamers in these communities argued that it is awkward to see two different genders play alongside each other because it is something that does not happen in real life. Others complain about female players being just as strong, fast, and skilled as male players.
However, the Ultimate Team has never been a realistic game mode. In Ultimate Team, things that are impossible in real life happens. Retired legends and current players share the same field, and goalkeepers turn into one of the best attackers. And that is the reason why it is such a popular and loved game mode.
While there may be controversion initially, benefits within and beyond the mode, makes the integration of male and female players in Ultimate Team a promising and evolutive change.
Still early in the game, the inclusion of women has already made the Ultimate Team far more enjoyable than before.
The beauty of Ultimate Team lies in building a unique squad and deriving enjoyment from it while competing against other gamers. Unfortunately, this value has been compromised in recent FIFA Ultimate Teams. In pursuit of victory, many gamers have started to use a group of few highly effective, often labeled as “Meta” players. Consequently, this trend has led to nearly identical teams among gamers, eroding the joy of assembling a distinctive squad.
The inclusion of women players offers a potential solution to this issue. According to the official EA FC24 Ultimate Team website, over 40 female players with a rating of higher or equal to 85 have been added. The inclusion of competitive female players significantly widened the availability of effective options for gamers to choose from, and thereby regained the diversity and uniqueness of each team.
Another benefit that is consequenced of a wider pool of players to choose from is a cheaper price of players. In Ultimate Team, users are able to purchase and sell players from a virtual market system called the transfer market. With a larger supply of effective players, the prices of players in the transmarket have generally dropped. For example, the top 30 male players in the Ultimate Team has dropped 30% in price compared to Ultimate Team in FIFA 23, making them more affordable for the gamers.
Going beyond the virtual realm, the addition of female players also has the potential to increase the popularity of women’s football, which has been historically lower than the men’s.
EA Sports FC24 director John Shepred said, “We feel we can play a really important role in the growth of [women’s soccer] in introducing it to all of our fans.”
The Ultimate Team has more than 8 million fans worldwide, and featuring female players in this mode has a great chance of enhancing the visibility of women’s football to the real world.
Of the 60% EA male fan base, many of them are unfamiliar with women’s football. However, as they play this mode, they will consistently encounter different leagues, teams, and star players of women’s football, gradually rasing their familiarity and interest.
Moreover, female teenagers, as they play this mode, can be inspired of how women atheletes are equally competing against their male counterparts, and develop their dreams of becoming one in the future.
The inclusion of female players this year, stands as one of the most revolutionary changes EA Sports has ever implemented in Ultimate Team. Although there may be controversion caused by unfamilarity initially, once the benefits it can give to the mode and the real life is understood by the fans, it will turn out to be a great change at the end.
