Yahoo Finance EA Sports is bringing back its college football game
Don't expect to play as real-life student-athletes, though.
EA Sports is once again ready for some College Football. It confirmed it's reviving the franchise with a to-the-point tweet.
For those who never stopped believing...#EASPORTSCollegeFootball pic.twitter.com/2vDUYnbXEJ
— EA SPORTS (@EASPORTS) February 2, 2021
Notably, EA didn't mention the NCAA in its announcement. The publisher ended the NCAA Football series in the wake of a class-action lawsuit over the use of student-athlete likenesses.
The NCAA currently forbids student-athletes to profit from their name, image and licensing rights. As such, the game won’t feature actual student-athletes, but EA Sports “is continuing to watch those developments closely.” Players on the College Football rosters will have randomized names, uniform numbers and stats, and the game will include customization options.
Through a partnership with collegiate trademark licensing company CLC, EA Sports has secured access to the logos, stadiums, uniforms and gameday traditions of more than 100 institutions, so there’ll be some degree of authenticity. EA has only just started work on College Football and noted that word of a release timeline is “still to come as the project progresses in the years ahead.”
Update 2/2 12:55PM ET: Added more details about licensing.
