Plus, Chris... Need I remind you that games like Batman have been selling their DLCs with simple character costumes?
If you released kit DLCs for PES/FIFA, a lot of people would snap that up. Definitely. But an EDITOR? No way, absolutely no chance. Your core audience doesn't want to do any work - and importing other people's kits is STILL WORK! The vast majority don't do that. They play it as it comes. People want to buy a game, not a dev kit to make their own. They can't be bothered. Let's be honest, who can blame them?
I'd rather people spent their money on something that would actually make EA and Konami work hard to create and be innovative and people would get something big in return.
I'd rather that too. But it's not the world we live in. People in general treat PES and FIFA like you or I would treat a mobile phone game, or Pacman... They buy it and if they like it, great. If they don't, they don't have anything to say about it. They're not passionate about it. It's just a game.
Buying a stupid kit and "standing out" and/or trolling your opponent, that's something people will pay for. But anything that involves work... Try explaining how much work we've done in our lives, for free, to put all the latest kits (and even the right damn footballs) in the game - leaving ourselves with no time (or inclination) to actually PLAY THE GAME. They will laugh in your face.
We are not the normal. We are the offline, and we are doomed.
(The motto of House Evo-Web right there...)
As I say, I truly think our only hope is that football games are split into "PES ONLINE" and "PES OFFLINE", at which point there are two development teams and the potential is there for a lot more work (on both sides).
But as things stand, both football game developers are doing nothing for offline. EA tried "The Journey" and it was huge in year one, only for everyone to get bored of it by year two. (Because it was linear, boring crap.) Since then, they said getting the UEFA license was "enough" of a change for the career mode. As for PES, well, look at the ML.
It's a huge sign of what's to come. I bet you within the next three years, there's a statement from someone in either camp along the lines of "you should be grateful there's any career mode at all".