FIFA: Ranking games from '98 to 22 as EA Sports FC becomes new name | OneFootball

On May 10, the astonishing news that FIFA and EA Sports would part ways swept across the gaming world.

This ends what will be a near three-decade partnership and means a name change is coming to a gaming franchise known across generations.

The change is timed to happen following the FIFA World Cup in Qatar, with FIFA 23 being the last instalment. Instead, EA will continue making the game under the name ‘EA Sports FC’ and insists that they will keep their licences to many leagues and players across the world.

Though, this has got many gaming fans to look back at the iconic series and what the best and worst entries under the ‘FIFA’ name were.

We’ve located a fan-made tier list to see where games are placed, so let’s take a look.

Tier 5 – Trash (16, 19, 20, 21, 22)

At the lowest tier, it may be no surprise to find the more recent versions of the game. Newer games have felt the sting of not being able to match up to the older titles. It’s possible to create your own fun on these games through the use of Pro Clubs or Career Mode, but these haven’t been given the proper amount of attention for a while. In online modes, the gameplay itself is often slow and players can find themselves only being successful if they use players and formations that are meta for that year which severely limits their options.

Tier 4 – Average (2000, 2001, 2003)

Games from this era can be loved based purely on nostalgia, but here are three entries in four years that may be forgotten. There are things for players to enjoy, but overall these don’t match up to those in the higher tiers.

Tier 3 – Good (06, 08 98, 18, 2005, 2009)

A real mixed bag here. It features an extremely early edition of FIFA, which showed promise, as well as one as recent as FIFA 18. FIFAs from the 2000s are known for having a far more detailed Career Mode than what we see today, which would lift them up to this tier, as well as FIFA 18 having World Cup mode, which added a new dynamic to the game towards the end of its cycle.

Tier 2 – Great (99, 2002, 2004, 11, 15)

Not quite enough to make it into the top tier, though, these games are still quality. We see a few near-misses such as 11 and 15, which are good, but find themselves in the top category like some of their neighbours and early editions from the game which have stood the test of time.

Tier 1 – Legendary (07, 10, 12, 13, 14, 17)

These games are the best that the franchise has produced. They have that perfect blend of good gameplay, soundtrack and modes available. It’s telling when people still go back and choose to play these editions to this day. Players could sink hours into the Career Mode as well as these titles being among the first to see the introduction of Ultimate Team which, at the time, was a breath of fresh air for the series.