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Konami and the UEFA Champions League today announced the end of their 10-year partnership for the Pro Evolution Soccer franchise, which will take effect after the UEFA Champions League final, taking place next month in Kyiv.

In a statement, UEFA Events SA Marketing director Guy-Laurent Epstein said that it had been "a very cooperative and mutually beneficial partnership" and that they would "like to thank Konami for its tremendous commitment and support to UEFA club competitions for the last decade and we look forward to continuing to work with Konami in the sphere of UEFA national team football."

Jonas Lygaard, the senior director of brand & business development at Konami, added: "the UEFA Champions League licence has given us a platform to create unique experiences and provide football fans from all over the world with an opportunity to enjoy this competition first-hand. This year, however, we will shift our focus into other areas. We will continue to explore alternative ways UEFA and Konami can continue to work together, as our relationship remains strong."

It’s a big blow for the Pro Evolution Soccer franchise, but they’ve also been picking up a lot of other licenses and working with clubs directly. Pro Evolution Soccer 2019 hasn’t yet been announced, but we’ll see how this shakes out for them when they announce.

This also creates an opportunity for EA to try and acquire the license for their FIFA franchise.