One of the most eagerly anticipated video games of 2024 is the upcoming “EA Sports College Football 25.”
Formerly known as the wildly popular “NCAA Football” franchise, the series has laid dormant since 2013 due to a litany of factors, the not least of which being a massive lawsuit that would eventually pave the way for college players to be paid for their name, image and likeness.
(And the NIL money is very real, to be sure.)
After Electronic Arts teased the game would be returning in 2021, fans have been impatiently waiting for more information about the game.
Well, a lot of that information is now here, and it’s pretty fascinating — especially for current college football stars.
The most noteworthy new bit of information is that current players now have the choice to opt into having their name, image and likeness used in “College Football 25,” per ESPN.
Any college football player who does opt-in will “eventually” receive $600 and a free copy of the game (which costs about $70).
ESPN added two wrinkles to those payments:
- “Athletes would remain in the game for their entire careers but could opt out of future editions if they choose.”
- “Athletes who remain in the game for multiple years will be paid annually, and players who transfer will continue to be compensated as long as they are on a roster.”
Would you opt into this game if you played college football?
But the NIL money doesn’t stop there.
Some college football athletes will have the option to partake in further NIL opportunities by promoting the game on social media and campus.
Athletes who decide not to opt in will be replaced in-game by a generic avatar.
Interestingly, that same avatar won’t actually be based on the player, but an amalgamation from the school’s history of that position.
So if Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe declines to be in the game, get ready for some mutant hybrid of Tua Tagovialoa, Mac Jones and Jalen Hurts.
And just in case any entrepreneurial minds try to create their own custom player to represent a player who has opted out, that won’t be possible according to ESPN.
“College Football 25” will also feature all 134 FBS schools (The University of Delaware Fightin’ Blue Hens, sadly, just missed the cut as they will be recognized as an FBS school in 2025) according to a recent X post:
They’re in the game.
College Football 25 will feature all 134 FBS schools #CFB25 pic.twitter.com/WLH3DEXdv0
— EASPORTSCollege (@EASPORTSCollege) February 22, 2024
“EA Sports College Football 25” still doesn’t have a concrete release date, but is slated to release this summer. A “full reveal” of the game is slated for May.
