Kurt0411: Fifa’s most controversial player reflects on EA ruling

An exclusive interview with arguably the most outspoken and controversial figure involved in the game of FIFA.

Kurt Fenech, most commonly known as ‘Kurt0411’ within the FIFA community, has been one of the most talked about and controversial personalities in eSports in recent years. Whether he was speaking out about Electronic Arts (EA) itself or content creators for not following suit, Kurt has never shied away from speaking his mind openly.

Ultimately, it was this outspoken nature that cost him the ability to play the game that he formally loved so dearly. This interview delves into his current thoughts on the game, how he would improve it and most importantly how the treatment by EA has affected him.

Kurt has received multiple suspensions for violating EA’s Code of Conduct. Regardless of these bans, Kurt continued to criticize EA, leading to them banning him completely. On the 4^th of March after receiving copyright strikes and getting his account deleted, he was forced to stop streaming FIFA altogether.

Many professional players and streamers of the game have openly criticised EA’s decision. The stance taken by EA against Kurt seems somewhat extreme compared to others. Kurt outlined his thoughts here on how he’s processed their verdict.

“Yeah it’s not been easy for me but ultimately I did cross the line and I have to accept that responsibility. Others have definitely done worse things within the community so yeah, it’s confusing as to why they faced no consequences.”

In recent years, the replay ability of FIFA has begun to decline, the game is now extremely focused around promotional content created in order to entice the consumer into spending money on a virtual currency known as ‘FIFA points’ to buy packs in the Ultimate Team game mode.

Kurt believes the lack of a true competitor to rival FIFA is the root cause of the issues within the game.

“I think it plays a massive part for sure, EA right now are obsessed with making as much money as they possibly can at the expense of their customers. With the main reason being they have monopolized the market. 

“It’s definitely gone stale for people who have been playing it for some time, in essence it’s just doing the same things over and over year after year. I think the whole game needs a revamp, if I had to name three things I’d go with: gameplay, add new game modes and restructure player’s stats and ratings.”

EA being so centrally focused on making money has led to a recent scandal leaking to the media. They confirmed ‘one or more’ accounts containing rare cards from an EA employee had been sold to players of the game. EA condemned these actions; however, it outlines how the current monetisation of the game is ruining its innocence and enjoyment.

Kurt commented on whether or not the recent leaks would provoke any real change within the game.

“You’d like to think so but it’s not the first time they’ve faced major scandals and somehow come out unscathed, so we’ll see.”

Kurt stated he has received no further communication from EA regarding the removal of his ban although did outline his confidence that he will one day return to the game. As well as hinting diverse content for his fans in the future.

“Yeah as much as I shouldn’t have said what I said, I didn’t say anything that deserves a permanent ban so I’m sure one day I will be allowed back. And yeah the one thing that always came before FIFA for me is the sport itself so there’s a lot of things I can do with that for sure.” 

Finally, throughout his break like many of us, Kurt was watching the historic performances put in from Anders Vejrgang. Kurt has praised him publicly on Twitter stating ‘we’ll never see anything like that again’ in reference to his 535-1 Weekend League record.

But who would win if Kurt was to return to the game and face him?

“Haha, he’d destroy if we were to play right now. I’m sure I’d need some time to get back to the level I was.”

The future remains unclear for Kurt. Whatever happens, the Fifa community eagerly awaits his return as fans continue to hope to see him making content again soon.

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