diff --git a/pkgs/games/freeciv/default.nix b/pkgs/games/freeciv/default.nix
index 60652af54a3a..13154fab62d8 100644
--- a/pkgs/games/freeciv/default.nix
+++ b/pkgs/games/freeciv/default.nix
@@ -73,7 +73,7 @@ stdenv.mkDerivation rec {
       libiconv
       icu
     ]
-    ++ [
+    ++ lib.optionals sdl2Client [
       SDL2
       SDL2_mixer
       SDL2_image