Football’s free-to-download presents a significant opportunity for Indian esports to excel on the global stage
Mumbai: In a country where mobile gaming dominates and interest in football continues to rise, India’s talented gamers now have the opportunity to compete for glory on the global stage in eFootball at the FIFA World Cup. Following the recent partnership between FIFA and Konami, eFootball, Konami’s football simulation game, has been officially included as one of the official titles featured in the FIFAe World Cup, alongside Rocket League and Football Manager.
In this inaugural year of this new development, India is among 18 countries officially invited to participate in eFootball at the global tournament, joining nations such as Argentina, Brazil, England, France, Spain, and Portugal. The top-performing athletes from each country will face off in the finals later this year across both mobile and console platforms.
According to the India Games Market Report 2023 by Niko Partners, India is primarily a mobile-first market, with 96.8% of gamers using smartphones or tablets. The total number of gamers across all platforms is expected to reach 641.2 million by 2027.
With India at the forefront of the mobile gaming revolution and eFootball available for free download, the country’s vast base of mobile gamers have the chance to turn their passion into success on the international stage. The free-to-play aspect also facilitates easier training and participation for India’s talented mobile gamers across all backgrounds, eliminating barriers that typically limit access to high-level competitive play.
Sharing his thoughts on the opportunity this presents for India’s esports industry, Akshat Rathee, Co-founder and Managing Director of NODWIN Gaming said, “This collaboration between FIFA and Konami to bring eFootball into the FIFAeWorld Cup is a significant moment for Indian esports. India’s inclusion in this global event is a source of immense national pride. The accessibility of a free-to-play game like eFootball ensures wider participation, and with FIFA fueling the esports ecosystem, we are witnessing the seamless integration of sports and esports—ushering in new opportunities for Indian gamers to shine on the world stage.”
eFootball is also set to be featured in the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting’s upcoming WAVES Esports Championship 2025 (WESC). The nation has also been consistently competing in the title at the Global Esports Games.
“The recognition of India as a region in a global esports tournament like the FIFA eWorld Cup is monumental for Indian esports. This collaboration between KONAMI and FIFA opens up valuable avenues for both mobile and console gamers across the country to compete on the international stage. Additionally, with eFootball being included in the roster of tournaments like WAVES 2025 which is supported by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, the title has great potential to bring further opportunities to aspiring Indian esports athletes,” commented Animesh Agarwal, aka 8Bit Thug, Co-Founder of S8UL and 8Bit Creatives.
Earlier this year, Konami announced that eFootball has surpassed 700 million total downloads worldwide.
Despite being a nation passionate about football, India has yet to compete in the FIFA World Cup. With the qualifiers for eFootball already underway, the nation’s talented esports athletes have the chance to bridge that gap by qualifying to represent the country at the FIFAe World