Former Sunderland winger and current on-trial defendant Adam Johnson cannot be deleted from the FIFA 16 video game due to ‘technical issues’, a spokesman from developer EA Sports said.
The 28-year-old is standing trial for allegations that he sexually abused a 15-year-old girl, with the England international found guilty of one count of the charges. Despite his current infamous position, users of the video game are still able to select him as a playable character, and there have been calls to have him removed.
After mass complaints by gamers and childhood abuse charities, the player still remains on the game’s database for some users, with EA Sports stating that it is ‘not possible’ to have him deleted from every game, despite intensive efforts to.
“We released a team update last month to remove Adam Johnson however due to technical issues it is not possible to delete him from everyone’s version.” Said EA.
Gabrielle Shaw, CEO of National Association for People Abused in Childhood believes the children who play the game had previously looked up to Johnson, meaning EA now had ‘a responsibility’ to remove him.
“This game is played by millions of children a day, so EA games has a responsibility to act.
“Johnson was chosen for his appeal to children and his hero status and he has wrecked both himself.”
The calls have not ended there, with many FIFA users taking to Twitter to voice their concerns that Johnson was still present within the game. One fan said that EA ‘better take Adam Johnson off FIFA ASAP’, while another said they should ‘just erase Adam Johnson from the game completely.
The player, capped 12 times by the England National Team, is facing up to ten years in prison after also admitting to kissing and grooming the under-age girl.
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