2K Sports officially launched Small Axe Studios in August 2026, a new AAA game development studio based in Vancouver and led by Aaron McHardy, a former EA executive producer for FIFA games [1, 2, 3]. McHardy worked 17 years at EA mostly on FIFA before leaving in 2023 to head Small Axe Studios [1, 3].
The studio originated from 2K Sports Lab, an internal project started in 2023 to explore future directions in sports gaming [1, 2, 3]. Small Axe Studios aims to build 2K’s next major sports franchise, building on the company’s experience with NBA 2K, WWE 2K, and PGA TOUR 2K games [1, 2, 3].
While 2K has not officially confirmed the sport the new studio will focus on, clues point to football (soccer). A mock soccer badge appears on the Small Axe website, and McHardy’s deep FIFA background suggests a potential challenger to EA Sports FC’s dominance in annual football games [1, 2, 3]. EA Sports FC currently lacks significant blockbuster competition, with Konami’s eFootball series still developing but not capturing major market share [1, 3].
Small Axe Studios has stated it is building a "player-first" AAA experience from the ground up [1, 2, 3]. The new studio’s launch marks 2K’s ambition to enter the annual football sports game sector with a fresh approach under industry veteran McHardy.
Aaron McHardy left EA in 2023, shortly after 2K launched the Sports Lab project that evolved into Small Axe Studios [1, 2, 3]. With its official unveiling in August 2026, Small Axe Studios represents 2K’s commitment to creating a major new sports franchise aimed at competing in football and other annual sports genres [1, 2, 3].
