Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) is set to win European Union approval for its acquisition of Electronic Arts under the bloc's Foreign Subsidies Regulation, Reuters reported, citing sources familiar with the review process.

The decision, if confirmed, would clear one of the largest state-backed takeovers in gaming history from the EU's newest merger-control instrument. The European Commission has been assessing whether subsidies benefiting PIF distorted the internal market — the core test of the Foreign Subsidies Regulation (FSR), which has applied to large cross-border deals since 2023.

What does clearance under the FSR mean?

The FSR review is separate from traditional antitrust scrutiny. It asks whether foreign state financial flows — grants, loans, guarantees or other state support — give a merging party an unfair advantage inside the EU single market, rather than whether the deal reduces competition.

For PIF, which operates as Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund, that review carried real weight. The fund sits at the center of the Kingdom's games investment push, holding stakes in multiple publishers and platform holders before moving to take Electronic Arts private.

Reuters attributed the expected outcome to sources, meaning the formal Commission decision has not yet been announced. The report did not specify a date for the ruling.

What changes for Electronic Arts?

EU clearance removes a major regulatory contingency for the transaction. For Electronic Arts — the publisher behind EA Sports FC, Battlefield and The Sims — the deal would shift ownership to PIF-controlled hands, a change with implications for:

• Publishing strategy across PC, console and mobile under new state-backed ownership
• Long-term investment in EA's franchises, live-service operations and licensing agreements, notably its football portfolio
• Studio operations, pending any commitments the new owners set post-closing

The EU would join other jurisdictions that have reviewed or must review the transaction before it can close.

Why the FSR matters for future gaming deals

The outcome will serve as a reference point for other state-linked acquirers in the games industry. Gulf sovereign funds have become among the most active capital sources in the sector, and the Commission's handling of PIF's subsidy profile signals how the FSR will treat state wealth funds generally — entities whose capital is, by design, state-derived.

A green light under subsidy rules would indicate Brussels does not view PIF's state backing as market-distorting in this case, a precedent other sovereign investors will study closely.

The formal Commission decision, and any conditions attached to it, remains the next milestone to watch.