FIFA 19

Lore & Background

As with FIFA 18, Cristiano Ronaldo featured as the cover athlete of the regular edition; however, following his unanticipated transfer from Real Madrid to Juventus, new cover art was released. He also appeared with Neymar on the cover of the Champions edition. In October 2018 a woman stated Ronaldo had raped her in a Las Vegas hotel room in 2009 and later filed a lawsuit in a Clark County, Nevada court, alleging Ronaldo and his team took advantage of her fragile emotional state and coerced her into signing a settlement and nondisclosure agreement in exchange for $375,000. As a result, in February 2019, EA replaced Ronaldo as the cover star with Neymar, Kevin De Bruyne and Paulo Dybala. The game features the UEFA club competitions for the first time, including the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League and the UEFA Super Cup. The character Alex Hunter, who first appeared in FIFA 17, returns for the third and final installment of 'The Journey', entitled 'The Journey: Champions'. In June 2019, a free update added the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup Final to kick-off mode. The online servers for the game for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 were shut down on 14 February 2023, whilst online servers for PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One were shut down on 6 November 2023. It is the last FIFA game to be available on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, and the last known game from a major studio to be physically available for the PlayStation 3 worldwide.

In Their Own Story

The evening light hits the asphalt of the Volta pitch in a way that makes the chain-link fence glow gold. Alex Hunter lines up for a free kick, the ball balanced on his boot, and for a moment the noise of the crowd—the laughter, the trash talk, the thump of a bass speaker somewhere behind the goal—fades to a low hum. He can feel the grain of the ball through his sock. One touch to set it. Two to strike. The net ripples. His teammates are already screaming, already pulling him into a hug that smells like sweat and summer. He grins, wipes his forehead with his sleeve, and the next match is already forming in the queue. This is the game. Not the league table, not the transfer window. Just this: a ball, a few friends, and the particular electricity of a kick that finds the corner.

Reader's Guide

Gameplay changes on FIFA 19 include the new 'Active Touch System'— an overhaul of player control, 'timed finishing'— where the kick button may be pressed a second time to determine the exact moment the ball is actually kicked, '50/50 battles'— a system for determining how likely a player will win loose balls, and 'Dynamic Tactics'— which allows players to configure strategies, and switch between them in real-time during a match. FIFA 19 introduces the UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League and UEFA Super Cup competitions to the game, after their licenses with Konami's Pro Evolution Soccer expired. The game will have support for promotion and relegation between the Champions League and Europa League. Martin Tyler and Alan Smith return as regular commentators with Derek Rae and Lee Dixon as Champions League commentators. Geoff Shreeves also returns as the touchline reporter as well as Alan McInally providing updates from around the league. New graphics and stadiums have been implemented. Composer Hans Zimmer and rapper Vince Staples recorded a new remix of the UEFA Champions League anthem for FIFA 19. It can also be heard in the game's reveal trailer. The Nintendo Switch port will receive upgrades over FIFA 18. On 9 June 2018, EA Sports uploaded an official reveal trailer on their YouTube channel. Cristiano Ronaldo returned as the global cover star for a second consecutive time. He and Neymar appear on the Champions and Ultimate Edition packs. However, Ronaldo was taken off the cover in February. Now, it features Neymar, Kevin De Bruyne and Paulo Dybala on the cover. It includes 55 national teams with 35 licensed leagues. It was confirmed that the game would have a licensed Serie A after being called 'Calcio A' (due to licensing issues) in FIFA 17 and FIFA 18. The game will include the Chinese Super League, the first FIFA title to do so. However, it was confirmed that the game will not include the Russian Premier League, as it did in FIFA 18 and previous FIFAs. Russian Premier League teams CSKA Moscow, Spartak Moscow, and Lokomotiv Moscow were kept, while Dinamo Zagreb, Dynamo Kyiv, Slavia Praha, and Viktoria Plzen were added to the game. Boca Juniors appears as Buenos Aires FC in the game since the club signed a deal with Konami; for the same reasons, Colo-Colo appears as CD Viñazur. Once again, due to Konami securing deals with certain Brazilian clubs, th

Did You Know?

• FIFA 19 is the last FIFA game to be available on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.
• Cristiano Ronaldo was replaced as the cover star in February 2019 after a rape allegation and lawsuit.
• The game features a remix of the UEFA Champions League anthem by Hans Zimmer and Vince Staples.
• FIFA 19 includes the Chinese Super League for the first time in the series.
• The PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions are known as FIFA 19: Legacy Edition and contain no new gameplay features aside from updated kits and squads.