EA to ban players from Russia and Belarus in both FIFA and Apex esports

EA has released a statement saying they’ll be banning teams from competing in both their Apex Legends (Global Series) and FIFA 22 (Global Series) esports competitions. With the measures they’ve taken EA has gone a step further than many other tournament organizers have done in the past, such as ESL. They’ll be banning Russian and Belarusian teams as well as players, while others have elected to allow the players to still compete.

Within their message, they’ve also included support for the people in Ukraine and condemn the invasion by Russia. “We continue to be shocked at the conflict that is unfolding in Ukraine and join so many voices around the world in calling for peace and an end to the invasion. We stand in solidarity with the people of Ukraine.”

While the new measures by EA won’t have a lot of impact on the top competitors of FIFA 22, it’s a different case altogether for Apex Legends. Over 25% of the Apex Pro League players hail from Russia, meaning a lot of changes will have to be made to the format and the competing teams and players.

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Image Credits: EA Sports
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