Take-Two Responds to FIFA and 2K Sports Partnership Rumors
Take-Two Interactive CEO Strauss Zelnick has responded to rumors of a possible partnership between FIFA and 2K Sports. This statement was made during the first quarter earnings call for fiscal year 2025 and addressed the company’s interest in creating a FIFA soccer simulation.
Zelnick on FIFA and 2K Sports
“We’re in the soccer business,” Zelnick said, emphasizing Take-Two’s strong position in its existing portfolio of sports games. He noted that the company is pleased with the success of the popular “Top Eleven” soccer management game on the mobile platform. However, he acknowledged that creating a high-quality soccer simulation for console is extremely difficult and takes a long time. “If you do it right, your users will be very loyal and very engaged,” Zelnick said.
Zelnick also said that having a FIFA license is not as simple as licensing deals with traditional sports organizations. “Players don’t come with teams or leagues. It’s not as simple as negotiating with the NFL or the NBA or the MLB, at most you have to negotiate with a league and a players’ union,” he said, highlighting the challenges in the soccer simulation market.
Zelnick expressed his satisfaction with the company’s current portfolio of sports games, noting that they have a wide range of successful game series from NBA to PGA to WWE. However, Zelnick did not completely close the door on possible future deals, leaving future possibilities open with the statement “I’m sure we’ll make more announcements when the time comes”.
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