EA will remove Russia from FIFA 22

Following country's invasion of Ukraine.

The Russian national football team and all Russian clubs will be removed from FIFA 22, FIFA Mobile and FIFA Online, EA has announced.

EA made the announcement this afternoon, just days after the real-life FIFA and UEFA governing bodies said Russia's national side and players would be banned until further notice.

The inevitable FIFA 23, which is still to be officially confirmed, is not mentioned in today's statement.

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"EA Sports stands in solidarity with the Ukranian people and like so many voices across the world of football, calls for peace and an end to the invasion of Ukraine," reads a statement released via Twitter.

"In line with our partners at FIFA and UEFA, EA Sports has initiated processes to remove the Russian national team and all Russian clubs from EA Sports FIFA products including: FIFA 22, FIFA Mobile and FIFA Online. We're also activiely evaluating related changes to other areas of our games.

"We will keep our communities up to date on any actions taken, and thank players for their patience as we work through these updates."

Numerous sporting bodies have banned Russian athletes and teams from competing, or moved fixtures and tournaments out of Russia.

National teams and sides - particularly in Europe - have also refused to play against Russia until further notice.

This week, UEFA moved the Champions League final from the Russian city of Saint Petersburg, and together with FIFA banned Russian teams from all international football.

Outside of football, the NHL is among several leagues to suspend Russian business relationships. EA Sports has said it will remove Russia from NHL 22, as well. This will be done "within the coming weeks", EA Sports said.

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Across the games industry, companies have responded with large donations to humanitarian organisations, and support for staff based in Ukraine.

However, Ukraine itself has now asked the video games industry to do more. The country's deputy prime minister penned an open letter "to all game development companies and esports platforms" calling for them to block Russian and Belarusian accounts, cancel tournaments and ban players to pile more pressure on Russia.