Super Mario Strikers is the next GameCube game for Switch Online + Expansion Pack

Super Mario Strikers will be joining the Nintendo GameCube library of games on Switch Online + Expansion Pack next week, with kick off set for 3rd July 2025.

Released back in 2005 toward the tail end of the GameCube era, Super Mario Strikers has become a real fan favourite, even with Mario Strikers Charged launching a couple years later for Wii, and then Mario Strikers: Battle League coming 15 years later for Switch. They didn’t quite scratch the same itch, and there’s plenty that will still proclaim the original Mario football game to be the best.

Super Mario Strikers will be playable exclusively on Nintendo Switch 2 for subscribers to Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack. GameCube game emulation is only available to the Switch 2 console. While we’ve seen GameCube games ported to original Switch, including Super Mario Sunshine and the first two Pikmin games, Nintendo has chosen to segment this as a new console perk.

This joins a trio of games that were available for the Switch 2’s launch, so the full GameCube lineup from 3rd July will be:

• The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker
• SoulCalibur 2
• F-Zero GX
• Super Mario Strikers

Previously teased as coming in future are:

• Super Mario Sunshine
• Fire Emblem Path of Radiance
• Pokémon XD Gale of Darkness
• Chibi-Robo!
• Luigi’s Mansion
• Pokémon Colosseum

Playing GameCube games again is great, especially with built-in support for wide screen and the ability to run at higher resolutions, and even with online multiplayer a possibility.

For the most authentic experience, you’ll want the official GameCube gamepad recreation which Nintendo has produced, and updated with wireless and Switch 2 system buttons. I gave this a review, saying “The Nintendo Switch 2 GameCube Controller is a great-feeling recreation of a classic gamepad, furnished with some extra hidden buttons to make it a shade more modern, but it’s too limited to use outside of the Switch Online game library.”