By Antara Tripathy, IBG NEWS

FIFA has announced an updated long-term Digital Football Strategy aimed at strengthening its presence across the global gaming and esports industry.

The new roadmap marks FIFA's transition from a traditional single-partner model to a broader multi-partner digital ecosystem designed to engage football fans across multiple gaming platforms and genres worldwide.

The strategy comes as FIFA intensifies preparations for the FIFA World Cup 2026™, with a strong focus on digital engagement, esports expansion and next-generation football entertainment experiences.

As part of its new digital strategy, FIFA has partnered with several leading gaming and entertainment companies, including Roblox, Epic Games, KONAMI, SEGA/Sports Interactive, Gamefam, Mythical Games and Solace Games. These collaborations are expected to help FIFA reach diverse gaming audiences ranging from casual players to professional esports competitors.

In addition, FIFA has entered into agreements with Netflix and Delphi Interactive to create a reimagined FIFA-branded football simulation experience. The upcoming title, FIFA World Cup™ - Launch Edition, is scheduled for release in June and is expected to form the foundation for future expansion across consoles, PC and mobile gaming platforms.

According to FIFA, the new strategy is intended to create stronger connectivity between FIFA competitions, Member Associations, esports organisations and gaming communities while opening new participation pathways for football fans globally.

FIFA Secretary General Mattias Grafström said the organisation aims to build a scalable and adaptable ecosystem that reflects the changing ways audiences interact with football in the digital era.

"By establishing a scalable foundation in gaming and esports, we're creating new opportunities for our 211 Member Associations and our Commercial Partners to participate and collaborate, which in turn will provide fans with greater options to engage with football," Grafström stated.

He added that FIFA's long-term ambition is to create a sustainable ecosystem capable of evolving alongside future gaming technologies and audience preferences.

FIFA's digital gaming portfolio has already recorded major global engagement figures. FIFA Super Soccer on Roblox, developed in collaboration with Gamefam, has become one of the platform's largest branded gaming experiences, attracting more than 10 million monthly active users and generating over one billion plays.

Meanwhile, FIFA Rivals has crossed 2.5 million downloads since launch and has featured collaborations with FIFA commercial partners, including adidas.

In the esports sector, FIFAe competitions conducted through KONAMI's eFootball™ platform have engaged more than 120 Member Associations and over 16 million players worldwide. FIFA stated that the FIFAe ecosystem generated over 1.1 billion views last year, making it one of the largest nation-based esports ecosystems globally.