By Sagar V. Mankar For years, Rocket League players and fans have been dreaming about a major international competition. Now, it seems their wishes are finally coming true.
FIFA is introducing the first-ever FIFAe World Cup featuring Rocket League. This comes after EA and FIFA ended their 30-year partnership, meaning EA games will no longer carry the FIFA brand. In response, FIFA is moving forward with new partnerships, including Rocket League and Football Manager. The 2023 FIFAe World Cup was the last to feature EA’s FIFA game series.
The new partnership was first announced in June at the RLCS London Major by Rocket League developer Psyonix.
FIFAe will invite 16 countries to participate in the World Cup, selecting them based on how many players from each nation have competed in past Rocket League Majors. Once a country receives an invitation, they will hold their own qualifiers to determine who will represent them in the tournament. The qualification process will be managed by each nation’s respective member association.
Back in 2019, Intel and the International Olympic Committee attempted to organize a major international Rocket League event called the Intel World Open (IWO). This event was part of the 2020 Summer Olympics celebrations in Tokyo.
The plan was for players to form national teams, compete in qualifiers, and then send the best teams to represent their countries in Tokyo. The event even boasted a substantial prize pool of $250,000 per game.
Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic forced the postponement of the event, much like the Olympics themselves. Though organizers tried to move the competition online in 2021, it didn’t capture the excitement of the in-person event everyone had hoped for.
Now, with the announcement of the FIFAe World Cup featuring Rocket League, fans finally have another chance to watch their favorite players compete on the international stage. The event is expected to be held in December, with details about the format, teams, and prize pool to be announced soon.
In addition to Rocket League, FIFA recently held the inaugural FIFAe World Cup featuring Football Manager, which concluded on September 1st. Indonesia made history by being crowned the first-ever champion, taking home the largest share of the $100,000 prize pool. This was part of the FIFAe Next Gen event in Liverpool, which also featured eFootball Pro Evolution Soccer. It’s possible that a FIFAe World Cup featuring eFootball could be next.