Freeze when opening in-game friends list/inviting players to multiplayer lobby.

Platform: Steam

Description:

My EA account has over 1,200 friends. When I open the friends list or attempt to invite a player to a multiplayer lobby, the game freezes while the in-game friends interface is loading.

The severity of the freeze is inconsistent between game launches:

- Approximately 50% of launches: the freeze lasts only briefly and has minimal impact on gameplay.

- Approximately 50% of launches: the freeze lasts up to 10 seconds.

During the longer freezes, if I am already in a multiplayer lobby or active multiplayer session, the game can become unresponsive long enough for me to be disconnected or removed from the lobby entirely.

Frequency: Intermittent (occurs in roughly half of all game launches).

Troubleshooting Performed:

- Reinstalled the game.

- Verified game file integrity through Steam.

Neither of these steps resolved the issue.

Expected Result:
Opening the friends list or sending an invite should not cause the game to freeze or disconnect the player from multiplayer sessions.

Actual Result:
The game freezes while the friends list loads, and longer freezes can result in being removed from multiplayer lobbies or sessions.