FIFA 22 Will Finally Let You Play As A Woman In Pro Clubs

For the first time in the history of the series, FIFA 22 will let you play as a woman in the Pro Clubs mode [via Eurogamer].

The FIFA franchise has included female players before, but only in a limited capacity compared to their male counterparts. These players were previously only available to play in the international teams seen in the kick-off mode and in the street football ‘Volta’ mode.

With EA’s latest installment in the FIFA franchise, set for release on October 1st, women players will be an option in the Pro Clubs section of the game. That’s the mode that lets players create a custom player and team to compete in 11v11 online matches. EA’s website calls it a “true representation of online football”.

Change is happening, but it’s slow

FIFA has slowly increased its representation of women in the sport since 2015. FIFA 16 was the first game to feature playable female characters. In FIFA 18, the character of Kim Hunter was added to The Journey single-player mode, though she didn’t become playable until a year later in FIFA 19.

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Also included in FIFA 22 will be Alex Scott as the first female commentator in the series’ history. Scott is a former professional footballer who played for Arsenal and represented England on numerous occasions. She’s now a regular sports presenter for the BBC.

According to Eurogamer’s report, EA Sports is yet to comment on whether its new game will include women’s clubs alongside the men’s clubs that have dominated the games since their inception.

How are other football games handling female representation?

Elsewhere, other football games are also taking steps in the right direction when it comes to representing women. Sports Interactive recently announced a huge project to bring women’s football to the hugely popular Football Manager series. The project is expected to take several years as they build a cohesive database akin to that of their male equivalents.

Konami also recently relaunched the Pro Evolution Soccer series under the name ‘eFootball’. However, the new free-to-play venture won’t include women’s teams at launch and has made no mention of whether they’ll arrive as part of the live service.

FIFA 22 is set to launch on October 1st on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and PC.

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Featured Image Credit: EA Sports