After a gap in which FIFA was left without a major partner in the esports arena following the licensing fallout with EA Sports over the EA Sports long-running FIFA series, the world governing body has agreed a collaboration with Konami Digital Entertainment Co.

Two editions of the FIFAe World Cup will be played on the Konami platform, utilising both mobile and gaming consoles.

EA Sports and its rebranded EA FC game runs its own global championships.

“We are incredibly excited to join forces with Konami. This collaboration aligns perfectly with our mission to promote football globally and to provide a platform for players to showcase their skills,” said Romy Gai, FIFA Chief Business Officer.

Qualifying for the FIFAe World Cup began yesterday. In the first year of the tournament, 18 nations have been invited with the participants selected on factors such as their player base and the previous performances of competitors from the respective countries.

Komani, senior executive officer Koji Kobayashi said: “At Konami we have continued to take on challenges in the development of football simulation and esports. We are very pleased to be able to contribute to the promotion of eFootball in a new dimension through this collaboration with FIFAe.”

Komani does have recent previous experience in this environment having hosted eFootball tournaments, most notably the Championship 2024 Club Event this year with European clubs, as well as the eJLeague in collaboration with the JLeague.

No value was given for the two-World Cup deal and Konami isn’t licensing the FIFA brand name for its game.

Since FIFA’s fallout with EA Sports (in 2020, $158.9 million of the governing body’s $266.5 million in total revenue for the year came from licensing rights, $100 million reckoned to be from EA Sports), FIFA has promised that it would be creating its own bigger and better video game with the belief that use of its FIFA name would blow allcomers – like EA FC and Konami – out the water.

It hasn’t so far and EA Sports and its new EA FC game have gone from strength to strength, proving that actually in the esports world, FIFA’s name doesn’t have a huge value, it is actually all about the game.

FIFA had wanted a significant increase on the reported $100 million a year EA was paying them for use of their name. EA took the view that they were overvaluing their license and FIFA brand name – it was their game and their ball and they took it away.

FIFA is now back in the esports game with a significant video gamemaker in Konami and with a branded FIFA efootball World Cup. But not yet with a branded efootball game that can compete with the efootball gold standard of EA FC, and unlikely anywhere near the $100 million per year they were receiving from EA.

More than 137,000 tickets to the Women’s Euro 2025 finals in Switzerland have been sold in the first week of going on sale, prompting UEFA to release another 50,000 yesterday.

UEFA said that all tickets in the18 matches of the first release have been sold. The additional tickets released cover all 31 matches.

In total 720,000 tickets will be available for the finals. UEFA is holding back 120,000 for sale to supporters of the 16 participating national teams. These will be released following the December 16 draw at the Swiss Tech Convention Centre in Lausanne, Switzerland.

Fans can purchase up to ten tickets per match from CHF25 for category 2 tickets. Category 1 tickets cost CHF40 for the group stage and quarter finals, rising to CHF for the semi-finals and CHF90 for the final.

An official ticket resale platform will be available from spring 2025. Ticket holders travelling within Switzerland will have free public transport. Their tickets will be valid on matchday for a second-class round trip between any Swiss locality and the match venue.

At the ticket launch on October 1 at the iconic Jungfraujoch in the Bernese Alps, 3,454m above sea level, Aleksander Čeferin, UEFA president, said: “This tournament goes beyond showcasing Europe’s top talent – it embodies UEFA’s deep commitment to elevating the sport and expanding its reach across the continent. We are eager to see the passion it will ignite in host cities and beyond, as it offers a powerful platform to inspire the next generation of fans and players. This is more than a sporting event – it celebrates progress and immense potential in women’s football.”

The Swiss have taglined the tournament the ‘Summit of emotions’. Getting a ticket looks like being a mountain climb in itself.

The Metropolitano Stadium, home to Spanish giants and 11-time La Liga Champions, Atletico Madrid has changed its name.

For the remainder of this season and until the end of the 2032-33 season, the venue will be known as the Riyadh Air Metropolitan.

In August 2023, Riyadh Air became the front-of-shirt sponsor for Atleti and the expansion of this partnership has made a substantial impact to balancing the club’s books.

Reports from the Spanish capital value the deal at between €250-300 million ($274 million to $328.8 million) in total, or €27.7-33.3 million a year. While the deal is one of the most lucrative in world sport, it still pales in the face of La Liga rivals, FC Barcelona, who receive a reported $76.8 million per year from the popular music streaming service, Spotify, however, that deal is only for four years.

Reports have been gaining traction that Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) sovereign wealth group is interested in the purchase of Atletico Madrid, which makes the Riyadh Airlines agreement a seamless play. The airline is wholly funded by PIF though it has yet to start flying, with operations slated to start in 2025.

With one of the highest wage bills in football currently estimated to be €136.4 million for the current season, Atletico, who sit fourth in La Liga and 23rd in the new Champions League Swiss, need this injection of cash to remain competitive.

The 70,460 capacity Metropolitano is one of the most iconic stadiums in world football and hosted the 2019 Champions League Final between Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur, however, it has been hit with a partial 3-game closure after crowd trouble during the recent Madrid derby.