ePremier League Returns With Revamped Format for 2025/26 Season

The ePremier League, Premier League’s official Electronic Arts Sports Football Club (EA Sports FC Pro) tournament, is returning for the 2025/26 season with a new format and expanded qualification pathway. On Nov. 12, Electronic Arts Inc. (EA), confirmed the new structure and key timelines, with the season kicking off on Nov. 26, 2025.

The competition, now in its eighth year, continues to operate under the FC Pro ecosystem, linking club-level competition to the FC Pro World Championship pathway. In addition to guaranteed seats at the 2026 FC Pro World Championship, the tournament will offer a £100,000 (~$131,600) prize pool.

According to Electronic Arts Sports and the Premier League, the redesign aims to enhance competitive balance across platforms and streamline progression from grassroots qualifiers to live finals. Will Brass, Premier League Chief Commercial Officer, said that “the tournament will reach a climax with two weekends of live action streamed across Premier League digital channels and global broadcast partners.”

New Format and Competition Structure

All 20 Premier League clubs are confirmed to participate, maintaining continuity from previous seasons.  The 2025/26 ePremier League season is scheduled to conclude within two weekends, featuring 40 players representing all 20 Premier League clubs.

In order to advance to the Club Playoffs in January 2026, competitors will then compete in up to three online Open Qualifiers in Nov. and Dec. 2025, collecting points toward their Club Leaderboards. ePremier League will offer three ePL Online Qualifiers, dated Nov. 26-27, Dec. 3-4, and Dec. 10-11, to advance into the club playoffs stage.

The Club Playoffs will begin in mid-January, with the eight advancing teams from each leadership board. This stage will feature a double-elimination bracket for advancing into the “1v1” Group Stage. 

The Group Stage begins on Feb. 28 and offers the final seeding bracket for Knockouts. The Knockout stage will feature multiple elimination rounds until one team emerges as the ePremier League Champion, during the Finals on Mar. 29, 2026. Additionally, a club's seeding in the Knockout Stage is determined by how well it performs in the Group Stage.

Unlike the previous seven editions, this time, clubs can use Fast Tracking to sign EA FC 26 players straight to the Group Stage. Registrations for the online qualifiers have started on Nov. 12 for all UK-based players aged 16 and older. 

The redesigned ePremier League arrives at a moment when EA, the tournament’s publisher and rights-holder, faces heightened scrutiny following its ongoing buy-out process. While the competition remains unaffected operationally, its timing has drawn attention to how EA will prioritize esports formats amid structural changes.