PES 2019 is out and it went down a storm with critics, who have praised the game`s animation, physics, and improvements to goalkeepers. It feels better than ever, they say. Job done then, well done everybody, let`s go home and win the Champions League on Master League.Ah. About that.PES has lost UEFA`s flagship license to its primary rival, FIFA 19. For lots of people, this is a huge deal, and it`s the exact reason FIFA is so popular. Year after year, the majority of critics agree that PES outclasses FIFA on the pitch, yet EA`s behemoth continues to outsell Konami`s challenger, largely because of its range of licenses. There`s definitely something to be said for being able to accurately replicate the experience you see on TV or in the stadium every week--we all pretended we were David Beckham as kids for a reason, after all.In response to this latest loss--of the highest-level club competition in the world--Konami says it has acquired more licensed domestic leagues than ever before, with the Russian Premier League and Turkish Super Lig added to Pro Evo this season. But what about top divisions such as the Premier League, La Liga, and the Bundesliga? Why are Arsenal, Liverpool, Barcelona, and Schalke officially included in PES 2019--complete with full scans of every player and the clubs` stadiums--but Manchester United, Real Madrid, and every other German club excluded (except for the prestigious names of Man Red and MD White, of course)?To find out more about what goes on in negotiations between video game publishers and football`s biggest governing bodies, we spoke to Pro Evolution Soccer`s European brand manager, Lennart Bobzien, who explained why Konami must make do with approximations of the world`s biggest clubs.GameSpot: Why can Konami have official versions of Arsenal and Liverpool but no more teams from the `English League?`Bobzien: The Premier League have signed a deal exclusively with EA, which means that we are not able to feature the Premier League i ...
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