CFB Players Offered $600 to Be Featured in EA Sports College Football 25 Video Game

Adam WellsFebruary 22, 2024

Photo Illustration by Mateusz Slodkowski/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

As EA Sports prepares to bring back its college football video game series this summer, details about compensation for players allowing their name, image and likeness to be used have been unveiled.

EA Sports told ESPN's Michael Rothstein that every athlete who opts in will receive $600 and a copy of the game as a "baseline payment with the potential for more lucrative NIL opportunities."

Sports business reporter Darren Rovell noted he would expect some top stars to sit out based on those compensation figures:

Darren Rovell @darrenrovell
Players will receive $600 plus a copy of the game to be in EA's NCAA video game, per <a href="https://twitter.com/mikerothstein?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@mikerothstein</a>.<br><br>Completely expect at that number for some stars to sit out. <br><br>The median payout for use of players in EA lawsuit (2004-2014 games) was $1,000.<a href="https://t.co/ITuAW8rnet">https://t.co/ITuAW8rnet</a>

As part of Thursday's announcement, EA Sports explained all 134 FBS teams will be in the game with approximately 11,000 players expected to be included.

If players decide not to give their NIL rights to EA, they will be filled in on the team's roster with a generic avatar. This happened in MLB video games in the early-2000s when Barry Bonds refused to sign the MLB Players Association's licensing agreement in 2003 to pursue his own licensing opportunities.

The result was Bonds being replaced with a made-up player, most notably in MVP Baseball 2005 when Jon Dowd was on the San Francisco Giants.

While players can opt into the new EA Sports college football game, head coaches will not be able to, at least this year.

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Daryl Holt, EA Sports' senior vice president and group general manager of EA Tiburon, told Rothstein the focus on the new game is being put on players, schools and traditions that make up college football.

Sean O'Brien, EA Sports vice president of business development, explained to Rothstein they are considering different ways to "offer coaches the opportunity to opt in beyond Year 1."

EA Sports confirmed on Feb. 15 that the college football series was coming back, with a full reveal of College Football 25 coming in May.

This will be the first time EA Sports has released a new college football video game since NCAA Football 14 was released in July 2013.