The story began in 1993 with FIFA International Soccer. What started as a simple football simulation has since evolved into EA FC—the world’s most popular soccer video game franchise, known to most fans for years simply as FIFA.
Over the decades, players have been able to step into the boots of their favorite stars, guide clubs to glory in Career Mode, or test their squad-building skills in the hugely popular Ultimate Team. Each yearly release has brought sharper gameplay, updated rosters, and new features to keep the experience fresh.
The covers, though, have always been just as iconic.
More than just packaging, the chosen athlete is a reflection of football’s biggest stars at the time. From Ronaldinho, Thierry Henry and Wayne Rooney, to Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and more recently Kylian Mbappé, the series’ cover stars have told their own story of the sport’s evolution.
Here’s a look back at every cover athlete throughout the history of the franchise—focusing on the main stars for European and international releases, rather than the alternative covers that appeared in select regions.
FIFA International Soccer
- Release date: Dec. 15, 1993
- Cover athletes: David Platt (Sampdoria/England) and Piotr Swierczewski (Marseille/Poland)
FIFA Soccer 95
- Release date: Nov. 10, 1994
- Cover athlete: Erik Thorstvedt (Tottenham Hotspur/Norway)
FIFA Soccer 96
- Release date: Sept. 30, 1995
- Cover athletes: Ioan Sabau (Brescia/Romania) and Andy Legg (Notts County/Wales)
FIFA 97
- Release date: Nov. 30, 1996
- Cover athlete: David Ginola (Newcastle United/France)
FIFA Soccer 64
- Release date: Mar. 27, 1997
- Cover athlete: Jordi Cruyff (Manchester United/Netherlands/Catalonia)
FIFA: Road to World Cup 98
- Release date: Nov. 8, 1997
- Cover athlete: David Beckham (Manchester United/England)
FIFA 99
- Release date: Nov. 30, 1998
- Cover athlete: Dennis Bergkamp (Arsenal/Netherlands)
FIFA 2000
- Release date: Oct. 26, 1999
- Cover athlete: Sol Campbell (Tottenham Hotspur/England)
FIFA 2001
- Release date: Nov. 8, 2000
- Cover athlete: Paul Scholes (Manchester United/England)
FIFA Football 2002
- Release date: Nov. 1, 2001
- Cover athlete: Thierry Henry (Arsenal/France)
FIFA Football 2003
- Release date: Nov. 5, 2002
- Cover athletes: Roberto Carlos (Real Madrid/Brazil), Ryan Giggs (Manchester United/Wales), Edgar Davids (Juventus/Netherlands)
FIFA Football 2004
- Release date: Oct. 18, 2003
- Cover athletes: Alessandro Del Piero (Juventus/Italy), Thierry Henry (Arsenal/France), Ronaldinho (FC Barcelona/Brazil)
FIFA Football 2005
- Release date: Oct. 11, 2004
- Cover athletes: Patrick Vieira (Arsenal/France), Fernando Morientes (Real Madrid/Spain), Andriy Schevchenko (AC Milan/Ukraine)
FIFA 06
- Release date: Oct. 4, 2005
- Cover athletes: Wayne Rooney (Manchester United/England), Ronaldinho (FC Barcelona/Brazil)
FIFA 07
- Release date: Sept. 25, 2006
- Cover athletes: Wayne Rooney (Manchester United/England), Ronaldinho (FC Barcelona/Brazil)
FIFA 08
- Release date: Sept. 27, 2007
- Cover athletes: Wayne Rooney (Manchester United/England), Ronaldinho (FC Barcelona/Brazil)
FIFA 09
- Release date: Oct. 3, 2008
- Cover athletes: Wayne Rooney (Manchester United/England), Ronaldinho (AC Milan/Brazil)
FIFA 10
- Release date: Oct. 2, 2009
- Cover athletes: Theo Walcott (Arsenal/England), Wayne Rooney (Manchester United/England), Frank Lampard (Chelsea/England)
FIFA 11
- Release date: Sept. 28, 2010
- Cover athletes: Kaka (Real Madrid/Brazil), Wayne Rooney (Manchester United/England)
FIFA 12
- Release date: Sept. 30, 2011
- Cover athletes: Wayne Rooney (Manchester United/England), Jack Wilshere (Arsenal/England)
FIFA 13
- Release date: Sept. 26, 2012
- Cover athletes: Lionel Messi (FC Barcelona/Argentina)
FIFA 14
- Release date: Sept. 24, 2013
- Cover athletes: Lionel Messi (FC Barcelona/Argentina)
FIFA 15
- Release date: Sept. 23, 2014
- Cover athletes: Lionel Messi (FC Barcelona/Argentina)
FIFA 16
- Release date: Sept. 22, 2015
- Cover athletes: Lionel Messi (FC Barcelona/Argentina)
FIFA 17
- Release date: Sept. 27, 2016
- Cover athletes: Marco Reus (Borussia Dortmund/Germany)
FIFA 18
- Release date: Sept. 29, 2017
- Cover athletes: Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid/Portugal)
FIFA 19
- Release date: Sept. 28, 2018
- Cover athletes: Cristiano Ronaldo (Juventus/Portugal)
FIFA 20
- Release date: Sept. 28, 2019
- Cover athletes: Eden Hazard (Real Madrid/Belgium)
FIFA 21
- Release date: Oct. 9, 2020
- Cover athletes: Kylian Mbappe (Paris Saint-Germain/France)
FIFA 22
- Release date: Oct. 1, 2021
- Cover athletes: Kylian Mbappé (Paris Saint-Germain/France)
FIFA 23
- Release date: Sept. 30, 2022
- Cover athletes: Kylian Mbappé (Paris Saint-Germain/France), Sam Kerr (Chelsea Women/Australia)
EA FC 24
- Release date: Sept. 29, 2023
- Cover athletes: Erling Haaland (Manchester City/Norway)
EA FC 25
- Release date: Sept. 27, 2024
- Cover athletes: Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid/England)
EA FC 26
- Release date: Sept. 26, 2025
- Cover athletes: Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid/England), Jamal Musiala (Bayern Munich/Germany)
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as EA FC/FIFA Cover History: All Cover Athletes.
