FIFA Devs, Star Athletes and Fans Fill 42 West for the Night of 1,000 Stars

EA Sports’ “FIFA” franchise is one of gaming’s most storied sports simulators—a game that has long been a game that acts as both a gateway for non-soccer fans to become fanatics and a game that fans of the sport can appreciate.

On September 19, fans rocking jerseys from every league imaginable packed 42 West in New York City for “Night of a 1000 Stars: A Celebration of FIFA 15, the invisible hand behind America’s Love Affair with the game we love.” This celebration detailed the rise of “FIFA” and its role in the growing popularity of soccer stateside.

“When you play Madden, you love the NFL,” said legendary sports journalist Roger Bennett. “EA Sports ‘FIFA’ was a game where it took a sport you didn’t necessarily know and it deepened your appreciation–and that appreciation turned to love.”

“It’s pretty easy to understand after a while,” said “FIFA” Senior Producer Nick Shannon. “Ultimately, we’ve obviously tried to innovate each year the last couple of years. We’ve tried to make the best game we can.”

It is that attention to detail and constant innovation that keeps the game fresh. This year’s new additions to the game include improved Goalkeeper AI and emotional intelligence. New features that make you wonder how does EA Sports do it? Continue to make the game accessible while adding hints of realism that keep fans coming back?

“Everyone is here because they love soccer,” said Shannon. “We get inspiration from watching the game.”

A statement that holds a lot of weight, especially in the world of soccer where passion for the sport is what really makes it the global phenomenon it is. It is hard to deny when you are sitting in a crowd of people where not one person has the same jersey on as another person or even a jersey in the same league.

The beauty in EA Sports’ “FIFA” also lies in the competitive fire it brings out in all of us, a fire that burns bright in the heart of professional athletes.

“The video game culture in the NBA and sports is a real thing, it gets very intense,” said 3x NBA All Star Kevin Love. “EA Sports ‘FIFA,’ if I was to say I was the best player on the team they would probably laugh at me and they would say ‘go ahead and pick Arsenal.’”

Love’s former Timberwolves locker room in the NBA that features “FIFA” in their videogame rotation, the NBA’s reigning Defensive Player of the Year Joakim Noah shares how Taj Gibson is the Bulls’ resident video game nerd.

Stars like Love and Noah’s adulation for “FIFA” are signals of the ever expanding soccer fan base here in the United States, however, the fight the United States Men’s National Team put up at this year’s World Cup has propelled the sport’s stock through the roof.

“It’s exciting. USA has a ways to go in soccer, but you can see that there is definitely a fighting spirit,” said Noah. “USA has fans now, they take their soccer really seriously now.

With this excitement around both the EA Sports “FIFA” franchise and the sport itself, do not surprised if kids start picking soccer over America’s most popular sport: Football.

“I believe with games like ‘FIFA ’15,’ the rise of the World Cup and that popularity, kids will become more and more involved with soccer,” said New York Jets starting Quarterback Geno Smith. “Like anything else you learn to love it.”

Although this is all a high for “FIFA” and the sport, it is not the twilight. If the game is going to continue to grow, it will ride on the back of “FIFA”—it’s growing popularity and the minds behind the games continuing to push the boundaries for the franchise.

“Every single year we are working on things,” said Shannon. “We look to be inspired by football at the end of the day.”