University of Texas backup quarterback Arch Manning announced Tuesday that his likeness will be used in EA Sports College Football 25 after reports he had turned down an offer from the game’s developer to appear in the game.
Manning is the grandson of former Saints quarterback Archie Manning and the nephew of Super Bowl-winning quarterbacks Peyton Manning and Eli Manning. Post to social media A video of Eli reading out fake play calls while throwing a touchdown pass in a video game. The video was captioned, “I’m in the game.”
EA Sports College Football 25 is scheduled to release on July 19. It will initially be available on the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X gaming systems.
The game will be the first version of EA Sports’ college football franchise to be released since 2013, when development of the game was halted following a lawsuit over using players’ likenesses without compensation. In 2021, the NCAA approved allowing players to profit from the brand, paving the way for the game to be developed again.
EA Sports offered FBS players a minimum of $600 as compensation to have their likeness featured in the game, plus a copy of the game, and also offered some players NIL contracts to promote the game through an ambassador program.
Manning was the most high-profile player to initially turn down EA Sports’ offer, multiple media outlets reported, saying he was focused on playing football on the field.
Eli Manning, perhaps teasing his nephew about the reported reasons for his withdrawal, tweeted: “@ArchManning is in the game! Great way to stay focused on football.”
More than 11,000 players signed up to take part in the game, which features all 134 schools in the Football Bowl Subdivision.
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AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football
