Title Update 8 has made FC 25 attractive again in the eyes of many fans – EA is hoping for a turnaround. Was the gameplay patch a direct response to the financial downturn?
Electronic Arts (EA) must have felt quite a bit of pressure to explain itself: The publisher released a press release a few days before the regular quarterly report with adjusted financial expectations for fiscal year 2025, which resulted in a stock crash. Why? Because EA is now expecting a “mid-single digit decline” instead of “mid-single digit growth”.
The reason given is not only the disappointing sales of Dragon Age: The Veilguard, but also “Global Football” – in other words, EA SPORTS FC 25 in particular. The net bookings for live services are the problem, and this category also includes pack sales in Football Ultimate Team (FUT). However, a glimmer of hope for the current and upcoming quarters has already been identified at EA: the latest patch.
EA tactic: patch, TOTY, recovery?
“The positive feedback from players and the initial results are encouraging. We remain confident in our long-term strategy and expect a return to growth in fiscal year 2026 when we implement our pipeline,” says EA CEO Andrew Wilson. In fact, Title Update 8 is getting mostly praise from the FC community, with gameplay in good shape for most fans.
But a functioning game alone does not significantly increase sales of FUT packs. This is where the Team of the Year, also mentioned by Wilson, comes into play. The TOTY is one of the biggest and most profitable promos ever. It’s only understandable that EA SPORTS wanted to bring many critics and renegades back on board with improved gameplay shortly before the highlight event.
Wilson did not present the major Title Update 8 as a direct response to collapsing financial figures. However, the fact that he mentioned the patch in this context certainly allows for that conclusion. In the community, the presumed causal link between financial worries and noticeably improved game quality in FC 25 is sparking mixed feelings. So EA can, if it really wants to.
For content creator ‘Piquelme’, the latest developments are “the best proof that the game will continue to perform poorly until EA’s profits suffer”. FUT trading expert ‘Jake’ celebrates a community success: “We did it. EA has a decline in live services for the first time in ages. This means that they can’t just keep releasing bad content.”
He attributes the measures – the big gameplay patch and a TOTY that has been quite strong in terms of content so far – to the boycott by many fans. ‘Thanks to everyone who stopped buying FC Points and helped make this change happen,’ ‘Jake’ writes on X. It remains to be seen whether EA will learn from the situation – or whether the wheel will be turned back after financial recovery.
