Sports Interactive, the studio behind the Football Manager series, has struck a deal with the Premier League organization over the next four years worth of games.
Starting with the 2024-2025 season, the 20 clubs that make up England’s football league will be fully licensed within the games, from player photos to team logos and kits.
The sports management series is a football fixture in the UK, and access to the equally important Premier League helps expand the audience for both. For publisher Sega, the multi-year deal could lead to a renewed, potentially longer deal down the line.
Everyone scores when sports games get to license real-world teams
When it comes to sports games, particularly football (or soccer, as it is in the states), deals like these can be rewarding for both the developer and the sports organization.
Look at last year’s EA Sports FC 24, which helped EA’s sports division post better-than-expected fall earnings. That game marked the publisher’s split from longtime partner FIFA, and had new (and old) licenses in place with global soccer teams.
Sports’ studio director Miles Jacobson confessed to wanting a Premier deal since the studio’s founding in 1994. For him, the deal’s biggest pro is “[letting] us help with the incredible things that the Premier League and their clubs do off the pitch,” such as community and charity work.
“We are very grateful to the Premier League and their other partners in our space,” he continued, “for enabling us to be an officially licensed product of the world’s most commercially successful football league.”