EA Sports' College Football Devs Reportedly Fear the Franchise Could Disappear by 2030

Developers working on EA Sports' College Football franchise reportedly fear that the series may not live to see the end of the decade.

The report comes from Insider Gaming's Mike Straw, who spoke to senior-level sources working on or around the football series. He noted that, although the series is performing well, sales have gradually declined entry to entry since its highly-anticipated debut in 2024. While this isn't inherently a bad thing (or unexpected, given the extreme hype around the 2024 title), costs associated with the game have been rising.

Per the report, in 2024, EA paid each player featured in the game $600, amounting to roughly $7 million total. Those costs have tripled, with NIL (name, image, likeness) rights for college athletes now costing $1,500 per player. As a result, EA spent roughly $20 million on its players with its latest game. …