FIFA has launched the FIFAe Storytelling Fund, a grant programme offering financial support to esports organisations, national member associations and digital creators working in the eFootball and Rocket League scenes. Esports.gg reported the announcement on August 6.
The fund is aimed at narrative-driven content across the FIFAe ecosystem, from grassroots competition through to coverage of major tournaments, and FIFA has framed it as support for people with direct knowledge of those scenes rather than for external broadcast partners.
How the fund is structured
There are two funding tracks. One is open exclusively to official FIFA member associations; the other is available to individual members of the community. Both accept a broad range of formats, including podcasts, social media video campaigns and documentary series.
Applications are judged against five criteria. Applicants submit an initial concept through a dedicated form, and anyone shortlisted then has to break down their budget and put together a formal pitch document before a decision is made.
FIFA was direct about the limits of a first attempt at this, and about what it expects to take from the opening round.
As with any new initiative, funding is limited, and we expect to learn a great deal from this first round.
Timing and open questions
The programme arrives ahead of two 2026 milestones for FIFA, the FIFAe World Cup and the FIFAe Finals, both of which run under an extended multi-year partnership with the Saudi Esports Federation. FIFAe competition drew more than 16 million participants last year.
One open question is how the two tracks balance out. Whether member associations use their dedicated route to fund coverage of domestic qualifiers and grassroots pathways, or whether most applications arrive from individual creators, will shape what a second round looks like — FIFA has said it will adjust based on what this cycle produces.
Continental qualification for the FIFAe Rocket League event begins in late August. FIFA has said further detail on timelines and award amounts will come through its official FIFAe channels as the programme enters its first review phase.
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