FIFA 16 features World Cup champ Alex Morgan as the franchise’s first female cover athlete

By Will Fulton July 21, 2015

fifa 16 cover athletes alex morgan — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Following the United States women’s national soccer team’s stunning World Cup victory over Japan, Electronic Arts has announced that for the first time a woman will appear on the cover of its popular soccer video game franchise. Alex Morgan, forward of the women’s championship team will join FC Barcelona forward Lionel Messi on the cover of FIFA 16 in the United States. Meanwhile, Canadian soccer star Christine Sinclair will appear on versions sold in Canada.

1764853_FIFA16xone2DPFTfrontus — Image used with permission by copyright holder

“It’s a really great honor to be on the cover of the game,” Morgan told USA Today. “It’s something I played, and my husband played in college. It’s going to tremendously help the women’s game in creating more awareness.”

“This year’s World Cup showcased the unbelievable talent and skill in women’s soccer,” said Sinclair in EA’s press release. “I’m thrilled that EA Sports is celebrating female athletes in FIFA 16. To be featured in the game and to promote women’s soccer with Alex is really special and another exciting step for women in sports.”

Matching the game’s cover to its contents, FIFA 16 will also be the first game in the series to include playable women, EA announced during its E3 press conference in June. Twelve national women’s teams will be included at launch: Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, England, France, Germany, Italy, Mexico, Spain, Sweden, and the U.S. Note that the list does not include Japan, so you will not yet be able to replicate the USWNT’s recent World Cup victory. In addition to women’s teams, FIFA 16 adds more defensive systems and midfield options, as well as a new mode called FIFA Trainer that will help both new and experienced players hone their skills.

FIFA 16 will be available on September 22 in North America for PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, and PC (via EA’s online service, Origin).

Topics

Former Digital Trends Contributor

Will Fulton is a New York-based writer and theater-maker. In 2011 he co-founded mythic theater company AntiMatter Collective…

Gaming

How to get to Monkey Island in Sea of Thieves

An election poster for guybrush in Sea of Thieves.

Over the course of its many years of updates and expansions, Sea of Thieves has had a few notable crossovers with other pirate franchises. The Pirates of the Caribbean crossover let you team up with the legendary Jack Sparrow, but the Monkey Island content felt like it came out of nowhere. For those unaware, Monkey Island is a series of pirate point-and-click games that were as funny as the puzzles were obscure. Thankfully, you don't have to intuit that you need to combine a cat whisker with a mason jar to bypass a skeleton guard to get to this new content, but it is more challenging than you might think.

Gaming

3 Xbox Game Pass games you need to play this weekend (May 3-5)

Senua in Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice.

Another weekend is upon us, and you're probably looking for some games to kill time with over the course of it. We're in a bit of a lull right now ahead of a flurry of releases starting next week, so it's a great time to dip back into the Xbox Game Pass catalog and check out some games that you may have missed. There are three games in particular that I think you should check out this weekend if you're looking for something to play.

One is an unsettling adventure that's getting an Xbox-exclusive sequel later this month. The next is a finely animated roguelike indie that recently made its way to Microsoft's gaming subscription service. Finally, there's a relaxing adventure that gives players a lot of freedom, yet is short enough to beat in a weekend. If you're having trouble deciding what to play this weekend, give one of these games a shot.
Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice

Gaming

3 underrated PS Plus games you should play this weekend (May 3-5)

The main character of Tales of Kenzera: Zau stands with two elemental items.

PlayStation Plus Premium and Extra have been around for almost two years, and during that time the subscription service has established itself as an ample competitor to Xbox Game Pass. That means there is a wealth of great games for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 owners to check out if they're looking for something to play this weekend. I think PS Plus subscribers should be looking toward some of the more underrated games in the subscription service this weekend too.

I have three particular picks in mind. The first is an enjoyable Metroidvania that came to PS Plus' game catalog when it launched just a couple of weeks ago and deserves a lot more attention than it's getting. After that, there's an action-platformer that pays homage to series like Ninja Gaiden that you should check out before it leaves the catalog. Finally, there's a PS2-era Star Wars game that fills the niche a recently canceled game would have.
Tales of Kenzera: Zau