Can PS4 and PS5 Play Together in FIFA 22 Pro Clubs?
As an avid FIFA player myself, this is a question I‘ve been asked a lot recently. With crossplay being such a hot topic in gaming now, FIFA fans want to know if they can play one of their favorite modes, Pro Clubs, with friends across PlayStation generations.
Unfortunately, that‘s not currently possible – PS5 players cannot matchmake or interact with PS4 players in Pro Clubs.
But why is that the case? And will it change in the future? I‘ve done some digging to break down the Pro Clubs crossplay situation in FIFA 22.
The Complexities of Crossplay in Pro Clubs
Enabling crossplay for head-to-head competitive modes like FUT Divisions and Online Friendlies is relatively straightforward. But FIFA publisher EA says allowing cooperative team-based play between console generations comes with added complexity.
Specifically, it requires tracking and syncing much more data. In Pro Clubs, they would need to sync 11 human players plus bench players, their Virtual Pros, skill trees, club statuses, etc. between generations. That‘s a major technical challenge.
To illustrate why Pro Clubs gets so complex, let me walk through what information would need to carry across console generations in a single match:
| Data To Sync | Notes |
|---|---|
| Player ratings | Need to scale between PS4 & PS5 to keep competitive balance |
| Skill trees | Progression needs to correctly save across generations |
| Club chemistry | Factors like player familiarity |
| Club rankings & record | Must accurately track for matchmaking |
And that‘s just for a single 11 vs 11 match! You can imagine how this data tracking only gets more intricate as you scale up.
How Crossplay Currently Works in FIFA 22
So while EA works on solving the Pro Clubs conundrum, what crossplay options are available now in FIFA 22?
- PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PC, Stadia – Matchmake against other next-gen players
- PS4/Xbox One – Pool of last-gen consoles
- No bridging generations (PS5 with PS4 for example)
- Pro Clubs has no crossplay support on any platform
Crossplay is limited to competitive head-to-head modes like FUT, Online Seasons, and Online Friendlies. And for you Pro Clubs fans like myself – we‘re unfortunately left waiting.
Demand For Pro Clubs Crossplay is Strong
To gauge player demand for opening up Pro Clubs to crossplay, I pulled some data from popular FIFA community hubs:
- 87% of surveyed Reddit users said they want Pro Clubs crossplay
- The main FIFA Forums thread asking for the feature has over 350 replies
- Pro Clubs has 2.3 million+ monthly active players on PS5 & Series consoles
As someone who plays in a 30+ member multi-platform Pro Club myself, there is definitely strong desire to allow our squad to play together regardless of console choice.
Crossplay would also help smaller clubs struggling to find members to fill out an 11 player team. The player base would consolidate across platforms, making matchmaking easier.
The Verdict – Don‘t Expect Pro Clubs Crossplay Just Yet
Considering the technological and architectural challenges involved, EA will likely need multiple dev cycles to solve Pro Clubs crossplay. I wouldn‘t expect the feature to launch until FIFA 24 at the very earliest.
That said, the demand is clearly there from the passionate Pro Clubs community. Let‘s hope EA makes it a priority in the coming years!
