A stepping stone between the game engines of FIFA Football 2002 and FIFA Football 2003, the game still incorporates the power bar for shots and crosses but with a steeper learning curve and customisation of the chances of being penalised by the match referee.

The game features each of the 32 teams that qualified for the 2002 FIFA World Cup, along with nine other national teams that did not qualify: Australia, Austria, Czech Republic, Finland, Greece, Israel, Norway, Scotland, and Switzerland.

[14][15][16] The PlayStation 2 version of 2002 FIFA World Cup received a "Gold" sales award from the Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association (ELSPA),[43] indicating sales of at least 200,000 copies in the United Kingdom.

[46] Bayern Munich and German international goalkeeper Oliver Kahn successfully sued Electronic Arts for their inclusion of him in the game without his prior consent despite EA reaching an agreement with FIFPro, the body that represents all FIFA players.

As a result, EA was banned from selling copies of the game in Germany and was forced to financially compensate Kahn.