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EA Sports College Football 25 informs athletes if they are in, out of video game

Nakos updated headshotby:Pete Nakos•06/27/24•

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College Football 25 is almost here! | Deep dive into the game and what to expect | EA Sports

As EA Sports College Football 25 approaches its release date, the company informed athletes Thursday if they will be in the game when it initially releases in July.

An EA Sports spokesperson told On3 that while the company would love to get every athlete in the video game, the game can include more than 11,000 athletes when it’s released in less than a month. There will be post-launch additions for athletes who break out onto the scene this season and other unique circumstances.

OneTeam Partners, which commercializes group licensing rights of professional and collegiate athletes, has been running point on managing the facilitation of NIL rights between EA and college football athletes. Just 10 days after the launch of the opt-in program, EA announced more than 10,000 athletes opted into the game. OneTeam told On3 last week that EA is now north of 14,000 opt-ins.

EA has always been clear and honest the plan has been to start with 85-man rosters for all 134 FBS teams. For athletes that are picked to be in the game, they will receive $600 plus a copy of the game for their participation.

Who will be in EA Sports College Football 25?

Some notable freshmen could be missing if they have not enrolled yet or received a school email, which is needed to register. Some late transfers who are still in the process of enrolling may also be missing at release time.

If an athlete isn’t included immediately, it does not mean they won’t be added, the EA spokesperson said. The game has been programmed so additions and changes can be made after the release.

Nearly every major star in the sport has opted in, with the only notable holdout at this point being Texas quarterback Arch Manning. The Longhorns’ starting quarterback, Quinn Ewers, is on the game’s cover.

EA Sports overshot its goal of 11,000, meaning roughly 2,600 athletes who went through the process won’t be included. The 14,000 number includes a lot of walk-ons. The contract offered by EA and OneTeam did not promise athletes’ NIL would be used. The video game company is spending $6 million to secure athletes’ rights, believed to be one of the largest NIL deals ever executed.

Athletes at Army, Navy and Air Force cannot accept compensation for participating in the game, however, EA is expected to include players from the service academies in the game.