Licenses sell games, and Konami know that which is probably why they have gone all out to secure as many deals as possible for their PES franchise. Today they are announcing a whole new partnership, one that will see their Italian arm expand with the introduction of Italy’s Second Division – Lega Serie B.
Working its way into eFootball PES 2021 Season Update is the latest in Konami’s Italian portfolio that already includes Serie A clubs with the Italian second division put in place. This means that eFootball PES 2021 Season Update – or PES 2021 as we’d much prefer to call it – will be the only PC and console game to include the Serie BKT with full licensing rights.
In addition to the official Serie BKT name, logo, trophy, match ball and more, the partnership between Konami and Lega Serie B also includes the rights to the following Serie BKT clubs:
- AC Pisa*
- AC Reggiana 1919*
- AS Cittadella*
- Ascoli Calcio*
- Chievo Verona
- Cosenza Calcio*
- Empoli FC*
- Frosinone Calcio*
- L.R. Vicenza Virtus*
- Pescara Calcio*
- Pordenone Calcio*
- Reggina 1914*
- SPAL 2013 Ferrara
- SS Monza 1912
- US Cremonese*
- US Lecce
- US Salernitana 1919*
- Venezia FC*
- Virtus Entella*
*Available exclusively (PC and console) on PES 2021 across all platforms
Further to that and ensuring that PES 2021 can compete at the national as well as club-level, Konami has also announced the signing of a license agreement with the Italian Football Federation, and as a result, PES 2021 will now be able to include the highest quality recreation of the Italian National Team.
Jonas Lygaard, Senior Director Brand & Business Development at Konami Digital Entertainment B.V. commented: “Providing the best possible representation of Italian football has been a priority for KONAMI and the eFootball PES series for many years now. Our partnership with Serie BKT is another example of this ambition. With AS Roma and Juventus fully exclusive, plus licenses for 16 additional Serie A clubs and now Serie BKT, it’s clear that PES 2021 is the game for Italian football fans.”
Mauro Balata, Lega Serie B President, said: “We are happy to continue together with KONAMI a great journey started last season during which we had so many followers and enthusiasm among our fans. This is also a great way to stay close to the Serie BKT fans in a very particular moment when the distance from the stadium saddens us a little’.
With eFootball PES 2021 Season Update holding its own more than capably against EA’s powerhouse in FIFA 21, this new partnership and licensing agreement should be one that fans across the globe find appealing. If you haven’t yet grabbed a copy of the game and wish to, you’ll find the usual Xbox One, PS4 and PC options available for you.