"Couldn’t even beat a bronze team": Michael van Gerwen jokes about being hopeless at playing EA FC

Michael van Gerwen has long been one of the undisputed giants of the darts world, but his skills on the digital football pitch leave much to be desired. In a candid interview with Viaplay, the three-time world champion opened up about his love of gaming — and his complete lack of talent when it comes to EA FC (formerly known as FIFA).

Amidst his packed schedule, Van Gerwen often unwinds with a gaming session, with Call of Duty: Warzone being his go-to. "It's just relaxing — chatting away through the headset with the other lads," he explained. Those "other lads" are often familiar faces from the darts scene, including Luke Humphries, Adrian Lewis, and Arron Monk. "But they don't play as much anymore," Van Gerwen noted.

The fierce competitive drive that has brought Van Gerwen so much success on the oche is just as present when he's gaming. "Of course you want to win," he said. "I want to win at everything." Nevertheless, the atmosphere remains light-hearted, and the occasional outburst is usually no more than a colorful remark. "That doesn't hurt every now and then," he laughed.

While Van Gerwen is right at home in first-person shooters, football games are a different story. EA FC is simply not his forte. "I'm terrible at it — really terrible," he admitted. In the past, he even tried to bridge the gap by spending heavily on building an Ultimate Team packed with superstars. "Back then, you could just buy points — it wasn’t really how it was supposed to be, but I bought them," he said, with typical honesty.

Despite assembling dream lineups featuring Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Zlatan Ibrahimović, success remained elusive. "I had the best team of anyone, but I couldn’t even beat a bronze team. I was that bad," Van Gerwen recalled with a chuckle.

With a grin, he acknowledged that while his wallet might have built a top squad, it couldn't improve his gameplay. "And I’ll stick to that for a while yet," he joked, referencing his substantial earnings from darts. Ultimately, even a three-time world champion knows when he’s beaten: "If you’re really no good at something, you’ve got to be honest with yourself."