EA Sports has confirmed that football icon Diego Maradona has been removed from FIFA 22 Ultimate Team.
The Argentine football icon, who sadly died aged 60 in November 2020, featured in the FIFA 22 Ultimate Team game mode as a FUT Icon, with four separate Icon player items that represent Maradona at different stages of his career. As you would expect, Maradona's player items are some of the most powerful in the entire game mode, with his lowest-rated Base Icon FUT player item rated at 91 out of 99, whilst his FUT Icon Moments item is rated at 98 out of 99.
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FIFA 22 players were able to obtain these items in FUT packs, FUT drafts and by purchasing the items via the Ultimate Team's in-game transfer market, with all four of Maradona's FUT Icon player items worth more in excess of 1.5 million coins at time of writing on all platforms.
Maradona was first included on the FIFA Ultimate Team game mode on EA Sports' FIFA 18, with the Argentine featuring as a new FUT Icon along with Ronaldo Nazário, Ronaldinho, Thierry Henry and Lev Yashin. In FIFA 18, EA Sports introduced FUT Icons as a replacement for FUT Legends. But following a third party legal dispute, EA Sports has confirmed to Mirror Football via a statement that Maradona will be removed from FIFA 22 Ultimate Team with immediate effect.
"Due to a third party legal dispute, we must suspend Diego Maradona from appearing in FIFA Ultimate Team Packs, future FUT content and the Soccer Aid World XI in EA SPORTS FIFA 22," An EA Sports Spokesperson told Mirror Football.
"As such, Diego Maradona ICON Items will no longer be made available in Packs, SBCs and FUT Draft.
"We have always included Maradona’s likeness and image under valid license agreements, first with Mr. Maradona himself and later with the company entitled to license Maradona’s image rights worldwide.
"We share our fans’ disappointment and hope to bring one of football’s greatest icons back in the game at some point in the future."
EA Sports' statement confirms that players who have already obtained a Maradona player item won't have their items removed from their clubs, with his items now only available from the FIFA 22 Ultimate Team transfer market. EA Sports has now added the above statement to FIFA 22 via an in-game message.
There has been talk for some time that Maradona would be removed from FIFA titles. Renowned FIFA 22 leaker @FutSheriff tweeted on March 19, 2022 that Maradona would be removed. Back in August 2021, Argentinian news website Infobae, via Eurogamer, reported that a judge recognised a trademark rights claim on Maradona by Sattvica, the company of lawyer Matías Morla.
The article stated that EA had apparently made a deal with Maradona's former manager Stéfano Ceci, who reportedly could not prove he had legal powers to sign such documents, which may lead to Maradona being removed from the game entirely, which has since been the case.
Renowned FIFA 22 leaker @FutSheriff tweeted on March 19, 2022 that Maradona would be removed
