FIFA’s new game is official but it won’t trouble EA anytime soon

FIFA getting back into video games was always going to happen. It was just a matter of when and how big they’d go with it.

After the split from Electronic Arts following FIFA 23, there was a sense that FIFA would try to rebuild something close to what it had lost, especially with the FIFA World Cup 2026 on the horizon. A proper rival to EA Sports FC, something that could at least make a dent.

Instead, it’s gone the other way. FIFA Heroes is a five-a-side, arcade-style game that leans heavily into chaos over realism. The trailer, which notably doesn’t show any actual gameplay, is full of exaggerated animations, glowing power-ups and a mix of real players, mascots and mythological characters thrown together for good measure.

It’s a long way from the simulation-heavy FIFA games people grew up with, and it feels closer to FIFA Street combined with Mario Strikers than anything we've seen before.

There are familiar faces in there. Harry Kane and Jack Grealish both appear, alongside the late Diego Maradona, which gives it a bit of star power, but they're joined by a few random characters like the Norse God Thor, oddly... clearly, Haaland didn't fancy it.

The England players are shown wearing kits from the previous tournament cycle, which is a strange look for a game that’s clearly trying to tie itself to the next World Cup. It’s a small detail, but one that adds to the slightly thrown-together feel of the whole thing.

FIFA Heroes | Official Reveal Trailer - YouTube

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The wider strategy is pretty clear, though. This is a free-to-play title, launching first on mobile and PC on the 28th of April before rolling out to consoles later, with an additional Netflix-linked game also in the works. It’s about accessibility, getting something out quickly, and reintroducing the FIFA name into gaming without taking a huge risk straight away.

The problem is, it doesn’t feel like much of a statement. EA has already shown it doesn’t need the FIFA branding, with its EA Sports FC series continuing to dominate, and it’s hard to imagine FIFA Heroes seriously competing with whatever comes next, likely EA Sports FC 27, especially when that game will still own the more realistic end of the market.

That doesn’t mean FIFA Heroes won’t find an audience. Free-to-play games usually do, especially with enough marketing behind them, and the more casual, pick-up-and-play angle could work for a different kind of player. But in terms of shifting the football gaming landscape, this isn’t it.

It feels more like FIFA dipping a toe back in rather than diving headfirst. And for a brand that used to define football gaming, that’s a slightly underwhelming place to start.

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