Summary
TheFIFAseries has been a cornerstone of gaming’s sports genre for decades. A video game adaptation of the world’s most popular sport is, unsurprisingly, a popular product, and EA had a monopoly on the licensing rights of teams and player names for much of the franchise’s run, which allowed theFIFAfranchise to reach incredible heights of popularity.
It’s not controversial to say that the series, especially in recent times, has been divisive,especially since the introduction of Ultimate Team, a mode that generates eye-watering sums of money. Despite the series' issues, it had some tremendous high points and has provided countless hours of entertainment for gamers all over the world.
Updated on Jul 10, 2025, by Ben Painter:FIFA is one of the best-selling and most beloved franchises in the world. Soccer (or football) is the most popular sport in the world, so it makes sense that this game series is one of the most played. From a franchise spanning since the 90s, FIFA, orEA Sports FC, has many entries in the series, including some spin-off titles such asFIFA Street.
Some versions of the game are more favored than others, with later entries generally receiving lower ratings, often due to one of the biggest criticisms being the reliability of Ultimate Team and its play-to-win design.
30FIFA 95
Not Much Change In The Second Entry
Following the success of the firstFIFAtitle,FIFA 95used the same engine as its predecessor, including 2D graphics. However, unlikeFIFA International Soccer, this edition included club teams from the major leagues around the world around that time. But, although the clubs were real,the players were not.
Despite this, going back to play this game in 2025 would be a slog and not add much to the nostalgia element, as the players that fans loved around that time aren’t even present. What also holds this back is the fact that it is the only title in the entire franchise that was only released on one console, the Sega Genesis. This means that buying this game and playing it in the modern day would be a hard task.
29FIFA Football 2005
Not A Lot Of New Features Added
Although this game holds a lot of nostalgia among fans, in terms of what FIFA Football 2005 added to the overall franchise, it is not a lot. This is because the game was somewhat rushed to get a head start overPro Evolution Soccer 4on the market and also EA’s own title,FIFA Street.
The only thing that was brand-new was the one-touch passing system allowing players to perform realistic tricks and passes within the game. It was also the first to include the full Mexican League, something that is absent in the modern day. 2005 didn’t even include the iconic opening video!
28FIFA 21
A Game Met With Controversy
FIFA 21was met with a lot of controversy, mainly around the Ultimate Team game mode. Fans criticized the changes that were made, saying that the game has morphed into a pay-to-win model, with FIFA Points eventually being banned in Belgium and the US and UK governments debating the legality of it. Essentially, it promoted gambling to children. Another controversy of the game was the fact that at least one EA employee was found to be selling specific cards for their own profit, which was massively against the spirit of the game.
However, there were some improvements over FIFA 20, 11 new icons, the removal of annoying training and fitness consumables and the ability to fully customize the stadium. It is also the first entry available on the next-gen consoles of the PlayStation 5 and XBOX SeriesX/S.
FIFA 23could have been better received by fans, with no real innovation in this entry. It was EA Sports' last title going byFIFAbefore losing the license to use the name it shared with the World Soccer Federation. One thing that it did was women’s domestic leagues for the first time.
The previous few gamesfeatured women’s players, but only via the National Teams. Now, fans could play as women’s sides for iconic teams such as Chelsea, Bayern Munich, and Paris Saint-Germain. However, more was needed for fans to get on board, and there was a sense that they were saving new features for the next entry when they had to rebrand as EA Sports FC.
26FIFA 16
The First To Include Women Players
This game was innovative for featuring women players for the very first time, introducing them as national teams such as the USA, England & France. The game was also iconic for featuring several different cover stars from around the world. Along with Lionel Messi, there was a different star in each country: in the UK, it was Jordan Henderson, Alex Morgan in the USA, Mauro Icardi in Italy and so on.
However, the game was heavily criticized for losing its license to the iconic Brazilian National Team. Neymar, Thiago Silva, and Dani Alves were replaced with generic players, which took away from the game’s immersion massively.
The First To Include Power Bars
FIFA Football 2002added a few features, including power bars, allowing players to accurately choose the power of their shots and passes depending on how long they held the button. This was a massive improvement to the game, and it has lasted up until the modern day.
More clubs received their correct emblems, which meant that the brand was growing. An awesome feature of this one was the card reward system. If players win a specific competition, they unlock a star player card. This is the early appearance ofthe popular Ultimate Team modethat was first introduced inFIFA 09.
24FIFA Football 2004
Secondary Divisions Are Added
Promotion is very important in European soccer. Winning the title and moving up to the top league is something that players can only dream of. In FIFA Football 2004, this dream became a reality when second divisions: Serie B of Italy, the Championship of England and Ligue 2 of France, for example. This allows players to work towards something in career mode and overall adds to the longevity of the mode.
Another big feature that was added in 2004 was the off-the-ball movement feature, allowing players to take control of two players at once to make better passing options or to aid in defense. Overall, 2004 was a solid entry with features that have stood the test of time.
The First To Include 3D Graphics
On the Sega Saturn, PlayStation, and PC versions of the game, it was the first FIFA titleto feature 3D graphicsusing the technology available on those new consoles. In the early days of a soccer game, it was also the first to include real player names and positions, which was important going forward.
New leagues were added, including the Scottish Football League Premier Division, Allsvenskan, and Super League Malaysia. Most importantly, it was the first game to include a proper introduction.
The game, which featured then Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo as the cover star,continued the Journey game mode, which was a story mode where players could control Alex Hunter, a young footballer with cut scenes, and now Hunter is fully customizable.
FIFA 18was also groundbreaking as it was the first game in the series to use the Frostbite Engine (for Xbox One, PS4, and PC players), which was a big improvement on graphics and offered ‘Real Motion Technology’. In-game players moved and behaved more realistically than ever before. The game was met with a lot of controversy, however, due to the amount of microtransactions in the Ultimate Team game mode. A trend which, sadly, has not gone away.
21FIFA 2000
The First Game In The Series To Have Consecutive Seasons
The FirstFIFAwhich was part of the new century,FIFA 2000, was innovative for being the first one in the series to have consecutive seasons. Players in career mode could compete for promotion or relegation and fight for places in European competitions for the first time.
It was also the firstFIFAto include a fully licensed US Major League Soccer (MLS), which has been a mainstay in the franchise ever since, as this franchise has always been massive in North America. Another interesting feature of this game was the inclusion of League One, Port Vale, despite the rest of the league being absent. This was due to the soundtrack featuring Robbie Williams' “This Is Us” and part of this deal was to include the club that Williams supports. The game was well received on PC and PlayStation, but compared to some modern entries, this game doesn’t hold up.
