Konami recently announced significant changes to its eFootball series, revealing that AS Roma, SSC Napoli, and AC Monza will no longer be featured in their football simulator.
Following the release of an in-game update, the three clubs will now display “original designs”, which essentially means the Italian teams will feature with fake logos, jerseys, and names.
Il Napoli sbarca su FIFA, e di conseguenza scompare da eFootball. pic.twitter.com/T0X38NpssN
— Valerio Fluido 𝕏 (@azzurrofluido) June 27, 2024
Since the 2021/22 season, Konami has had exclusive agreements with AS Roma and Napoli. In the 2022/23 season, they also secured a non-exclusive partnership with AC Monza, which included the integration of U-Power Stadium into the eFootball series. However, with the loss of these licenses, U-Power Stadium will also be removed from the game.
Despite these changes, Stadio Olimpico, the home ground of AS Roma, will remain in the game due to Konami’s ongoing exclusivity deal with Lazio, which shares the iconic stadium with their rivals.
These adjustments hint that AS Roma and Napoli are likely to return as licensed teams in the EA SPORTS FC series, reflecting the ongoing licensing battle between Konami and EA Sports. In recent years, AS Roma and Napoli appeared as unlicensed teams in the EA Sports FC series, formerly known as FIFA, but this seems poised to change with the upcoming release of EA SPORTS FC 25.
Despite these changes, the rosters for these teams will remain authentic in both games, thanks to agreements with FIFPro, which manages player image rights for international media use.
