EA Sports Takes Major Step Towards Having Real College Football Players in New Video Game

With EA Sports set to release the first college football game in over a decade this summer, thousands of players are eligible to receive NIL benefits as part of their inclusion in the game beginning on Thursday.

Athletes from all 134 FBS teams can opt-in to being included in the video game via Learfield’s COMPASS NIL app. A spokesperson from EA Sports told Chris Vannini of The Athletic that players who opt-in to being included in the video game will receive $600 and a free copy of the game. There will also be select players chosen to become ambassadors for the video game, who will be eligible for additional NIL benefits. 

Players who do not opt-in will be given a generic avatar and name in their place on the roster.

Licensing for the players to be included in the video game will be facilitated by OneTeam Partners, a company that has worked with EA Sports for years, assisting with group licensing with the NFL Players Association for the Madden franchise and for the MLS and NWSL for EA’s soccer titles, per Vannini.

“Including players in the return of the EA Sports College Football franchise guarantees they receive their direct benefits, OneTeam senior vice president Shelbi Hendricks said. “Our partnership with industry leaders like EA Sports and [Collegiate Licensing Company] focuses on authentic representation, underscoring the crucial role current players play in shaping the game.”

An official release date for the new video game has yet to be announced.