EA SPORTS will most likely once again have to do without the Allianz Arena of German record champions FC Bayern Munich in FC 25. However, this does not apply to all sports simulations from Vancouver
Bayern fans will have gotten used to the fact that they can no longer represent their favorite club on the authentic Munich pitch in FIFA or FC. Since FIFA 20, EA SPORTS no longer holds a license to represent the Allianz Arena, meaning that it is no longer included in the developer’s soccer simulations. This does not mean that EA SPORTS does not have FCB’s home ground in its repertoire at all
On Tuesday, the publisher shared promo images from Madden NFL 25, which celebrates its worldwide release on Friday. These included stadiums outside the USA – such as the Allianz Arena. NFL 2022 celebrated its German premiere there: The Tampa Bay Buccaneers around star quarterback Tom Brady defeated the Seattle Seahawks on Munich green. As a result, the Allianz Arena was included in Madden NFL 23 and has been in every game of the series since then
In November 2024, the NFL returns for the match between the New York Giants and the Carolina Panthers. In the promo image posted, the Allianz Arena can therefore also be seen in Giants livery. But why can EA SPORTS use the Bayern Stadium in Madden NFL 25 but not in FC 25?
Exclusive rights with Konami – but probably only for football
The sticking point is once again the licensing issue: the rights to the fully authentic implementation of the German record champions are held by their video game partner Konami and are therefore reserved for eFootball. However, this only applies to soccer simulations and direct competitors, which is why EA SPORTS is allowed to faithfully recreate the Allianz Arena in Madden NFL.
However, like its predecessors, the new soccer title from Vancouver will most likely not have to get by without any licenses for FC Bayern. Thanks to the long-standing deal with the DFL, EA SPORTS is allowed to use club names, crests and jerseys. The authentic players are secured thanks to the cooperation with the global professional representation FIFPro.
Things are different in Serie A, for example, where the focus is much more on individual club marketing. EA SPORTS official David Jackson recently confirmed to the Italian daily newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport that the two traditional Milan clubs AC and Inter will not be licensed in FC 25 – although this does not affect the players of the Rossoneri and Nerazzurri.