Madden 26 is officially out, and while football fans will almost certainly flock to it in droves, it’s only a matter of time before the conversation about EA Sports’ licensing agreement with the NFL rears its head and becomes a focal point. Heck, even we covered it as part of our Not Another Roster Update Newsletter last month. For two decades, EA has held an exclusive license with the National Football League to create NFL-branded, simulation-style football games, effectively preventing other developers from creating a fully licensed competitor. But what is the status of this agreement? What are industry insiders saying about it? And what does this mean for football games moving forward?
