The European Union is reportedly planning to officially approve the acquisition of EA by the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia at the end of July. The confirmation is likely to mark the end of the Saudi company's nearly year-long attempt to buy EA.
EA easily stands as one of gaming's juggernauts with a host of recognizable titles and studios in its stable. The company oversees a large number of subsidiary studios, ranging from The Sims developer Maxis to Apex Legends creator Respawn Entertainment. EA is also one of the biggest players in the sports gaming industry through EA Sports, which produces annual games based on the NFL, NHL and other major sports leagues. EA took a hit in late 2025 when it was revealed that Saudi Arabia's PIF was trying to buy the company, and now the deal is set to clear a major hurdle.
The European Union plans to cope with the purchase of EA
A recent report suggests that the European Commission is preparing to officially approve Saudi Arabia's attempted purchase of EA. The European Union's review of the purchase is expected to go through under the Foreign Subsidies Regulation on July 22, with the purchase scheduled to go through on July 30. The deal has seen significant pushback from several political bodies, including the US Democratic Party, which is calling on the Federal Trade Commission to review the EA purchase. Once approved by the EU, Saudi Arabia's purchase of EA will be the second largest acquisition in gaming history, behind only Microsoft's landmark purchase of Activision Blizzard.
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Saudi Arabia's purchase of EA has had a long road to its impending end. EA officially confirmed that the company was being bought in September 2025 and was sold to a consortium of Silver Lake, Affinity Partners and Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund. Andrew Wilson will remain as CEO of the company after the acquisition, and EA's headquarters will remain in California, as confirmed. After announcing the deal, Wilson referred to Saudi Arabia's acquisition of EA as a “recognition” of the company's work in building long-running and popular IPs in the games industry.
Big game acquisitions have become much more common in recent years, with many major studios buying iconic developers. Sony followed Microsoft's announced purchase of Activision Blizzard in 2022 by making a big move of its own and officially acquiring Fate developer Bungie, with the deal closing in July 2022. Rockstar and 2K parent company Take-Two recently teased their plans to potentially acquire more studios of their own, expecting to see massive revenue from the upcoming release of Grand Theft Auto 6.
The extent of changes that may result from completing the purchase of EA is not yet fully clear. Initial reports following the announcement of the sale suggested that EA would retain “creative control” of its games and subsidiaries, although the deal was confirmed to give PIF more than 90% of the company. EA's headquarters were even raided in May by a group of angry protesters, who tried to deliver a petition to block the takeover of the company. Saudi Arabia's purchase of EA has been a tumultuous affair in the gaming community, and one that appears to be coming to an end soon.
Source: GameSpot
