FIFA 23 guide: Everything we know so far

By Ben Wilson published

Everything you need to know about FIFA 23, from features and cover star, to licenses and Russian teams
FIFA 23 will be the last game in the series created by EA. This isn’t as shocking as it sounds – rumours of a divide between the mega-publisher and football’s governing body have persisted for months. In May, EA confirmed the split. From 2023 onwards, its game will be known as EA Sports FC, while FIFA 24 will be made by a different developer. 
When will we see the first FIFA 23 trailer?
With no E3 this year, it’s natural to wonder whether EA might delay the release of the first FIFA 23 trailer. In fact, that big cancellation shouldn’t matter. EA usually has a presence at the big Sony and Microsoft shows, but prefers to do its own thing on video reveals. Hence the annual EA Play Live event. That’s also been binned off, with EA planning to give each of its games individual attention over the summer. We therefore anticipate FIFA footage to emerge in its usual slot. So expect the first FIFA 23 trailer in June 2022. 

What is the FIFA 23 release date?
This one is fairly straightforward. Although no official release date has been announced yet, EA always drops FIFA in a very specific time period. FIFA 20 came out on September 24, 2019. FIFA 21 landed on October 9, 2020. And FIFA 22 came out on October 1, 2021. All those dates are Fridays, and the main reason for FIFA 21 emerging slightly later than the other two is the worldwide pandemic that understandably affected development. We can therefore speculate with some certainty that the FIFA 23 release date will be either Friday, September 23, 2022, or Friday, September 30, 2022.

What FIFA 23 licenses are already guaranteed?
While its game is in a bit of a state, eFootball 2022 publisher Konami has made in-roads on EA and FIFA in recent times. Four Italian clubs will again be renamed in FIFA 23. Juventus are now Piemonte Calcio, AS Roma will be Roma FC, Atalanta become Bergamo Calcio, and Lazio transform into Latium. 

Last year Konami also announced an exclusive deal with Napoli. That means Diego Maradona’s former side will also be listed under a different name in FIFA 23.

Note that player licenses aren’t tied to club ones, so the likes of Lorenzo Insigne and Dries Mertens should still maintain their real faces in-game.

Specific licensing details aren’t available at this point. But the publisher has announced its plans for sequel EA Sports FC, and FIFA 23 certainly isn’t going to fall short of those. That means we’re definitely getting 19,000 players, 700 teams, 100 stadiums, and more than 30 leagues. 
How will EA deal with FIFA 23 Russian teams and players?
It’s too early to say, and will likely be affected by Russian-Ukrainian relations later in the summer. In March, CSKA Moscow, Lokomotiv Moscow and Spartak Moscow were all removed from FIFA 22. The Russian national side also disappeared, as did kits and players from Russian clubs in Ultimate Team. (However, legends such as Lev Yashin and Aleksandr Mostovoi are still available in packs.)

At this point, plan for FIFA 23 to have no Russian clubs or national side. Spartak Moscow’s Otkritie Arena, another piece of content axed during that March cull, also feels unlikely to return.