The College Football National Championship has concluded with Michigan defeating Washington 34-13 to complete a perfect season on Jan. 8. However, some fans weren’t tuned in for the football, instead watching for new info about EA’s upcoming college football game. Unfortunately, they’ll be as disappointed as Huskies fans tonight.
Following some credible reports stating EA would give eager fans some more info about a return to the NCAA for EA Sports today, many kept their eyes and ears peeled for details about the game. Alas, the full college final came and went, and no details were shared.
Even though very tapped-in reporters had the story right from the beginning, fans were hopeful for some kind of communication. In the past, EA Sports has had at least a little bit of information for fans during the National Championship game. It would’ve been prudent to at least say something during college football’s biggest night of the year, especially considering this is the first time EA Sports is releasing a college football game in a decade.
In 2013, EA Sports announced that it would no longer create games for the NCAA series, citing a lawsuit concerning the use of player likenesses. Before NIL (name, image, and likeness) bylaws were changed in the sport, athletes in college sports could not be awarded third-party compensation.
While making no money, several athletes have seen the business of collegiate sports boom to a billion-dollar industry and are rightfully fighting for the right to at least control the endorsement deals they can take.
With NIL rules now firmly set in place, and the appropriate conferences coaxed back into making deals for their team’s branding, the game is set to re-release in summer 2024—a decade after it last hit shelves. College football fans have been frothing at the mouth for this game for months, so it’s a little absurd EA didn’t utilize the biggest night in the sport. You don’t have to give a release date, but give something to the people who have stuck around for most of their adult lives in anticipation.
In any case, you can be sure that ravenous fans will stay attached to social media this week in the hopes EA’s announcement was simply delayed.
