In a week that college football programs learned that they’ll face some hefty financial challenges due to the House vs. NCAA settlement, some mild revenue relief is coming their way. The hotly anticipated release of EA Sports College Football 25 will earn each of the 134 FBS programs royalties.
However, not all programs will earn the same amount from the return of the college football video game.
How Much Do Programs Get From Appearing in EA Sports College Football 25?
According to information obtained by a cllct.com Freedom of Information Act request, a tiered system will define how much each of the 134 FBS programs will receive for participating in EA Sports College Football 25.
The revenue distribution is divided into four tiers, with each program placed in a separate bucket based on AP Poll success over the past 10 years. There is a remarkable difference between the four tiers, as demonstrated below:
- Tier 1: $99,875.16
- Tier 2: $59,925.09
- Tier 3: $39,950.06
- Tier 4: $9,987.52
Using the AP Poll to determine royalties for appearance in the college video game is nothing new. According to the information received by cllct.com, the same measurement was used to distribute revenue for the original incarnation of the NCAA Football series. It has been 11 years since a college football video game last graced our consoles.
Programs can also earn further royalties from EA Sports College Football 25. If the video game’s sales exceed the minimum guaranteed royalties — given the anticipation and hype around it, this seems likely — then schools will get a 10% royalty on sales.
At a time when Name, Image, and Likeness legislation is proving divisive among differing factions of college football, it is interesting that programs could financially benefit from EA Sports College Football 25 to a greater degree than their players.
KEEP READING: EA Sports College Football 25: How Quinn Ewers, Donovan Edwards, and Travis Hunter Became the Faces of the Franchise
Every player that appears in EA Sports College Football 25 earns $600 and receives a free copy of the game, worth $70 for the standard edition. With 85 scholarship players on each of the 134 FBS rosters, the sum total earned by the players within a program (not including the value of the game) will be $51,000.
That’s less than the programs featured in Tier 1 and 2 of the revenue distribution will bag from appearing in the game. As such, 40.2% of FBS programs will earn more money than the sum of their scholarship athletes for participation in EA Sports College Football 25. That’s also before the 10% sales royalty they can receive for higher-than-anticipated sales.
Which Teams are in Each EA Sports College 25 Football Revenue Distribution Tier?
EA Sports College Football 25 Tier 1 Programs
- Alabama Crimson Tide
- Ohio State Buckeyes
- Clemson Tigers
- Notre Dame Fighting Irish
- Oklahoma Sooners
- Georgia Bulldogs
- LSU Tigers
- Michigan Wolverines
- Oregon Ducks
- Oklahoma State Cowboys
- Penn State Nittany Lions
- Utah Utes
- Iowa Hawkeyes
EA Sports College Football 25 Tier 2 Programs
- USC Trojans
- Florida State Seminoles
- Texas Longhorns
- Wisconsin Badgers
- Florida Gators
- Washington Huskies
- Cincinnati Bearcats
- Tennessee Volunteers
- TCU Horned Frogs
- Ole Miss Rebels
- Boise State Broncos
- Northwestern Wildcats
- Auburn Tigers
- Baylor Bears
- Michigan State Spartans
- Stanford Cardinal
- Louisville Cardinals
- UCF Knights
- Memphis Tigers
- Kansas State Wildcats
- NC State Wolfpack
- Miami Hurricanes
- Mississippi State Bulldogs
- Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns
- Pittsburgh Panthers
- Liberty Flames
- Kentucky Wildcats
- Utah State Aggies
- San Diego State Aztecs
- Texas A&M Aggies
- USF Bulls
- UCLA Bruins
- Arizona Wildcats
- West Virginia Mountaineers
- Houston Cougars
- Virginia Tech Hokies
- BYU Cougars
- North Carolina Tar Heels
- Fresno State Bulldogs
- Navy Midshipmen
- Missouri Tigers
EA Sports College Football 25 Tier 3 Programs
- Syracuse Orange
- Washington State Cougars
- Kansas Jayhawks
- Marshall Thundering Herd
- South Carolina Gamecocks
- Army Black Knights
- Troy Trojans
- Coastal Carolina Chanticleers
- Arkansas Razorbacks
- Colorado Buffaloes
- Western Michigan Broncos
- Minnesota Golden Gophers
- Indiana Hoosiers
- Air Force Falcons
- Iowa State Cyclones
- Appalachian State Mountaineers
- Tulane Green Wave
- Ball State Cardinals
- Buffalo Bulls
- Arizona State Sun Devils
- Wake Forest Demon Deacons
- Oregon State Beavers
- Western Kentucky Hilltoppers
- Georgia Tech Yellowjackets
- SMU Mustangs
- San Jose State Spartans
EA Sports College Football 25 Tier 4 Programs
- Tulsa Golden Hurricane
- Central Michigan Chippewas
- Kent State Golden Flashes
- Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders
- Texas Tech Red Raiders
- Old Dominion Monarchs
- UConn Huskies
- Georgia Southern Eagles
- Vanderbilt Commodores
- Georgia State Panthers
- Colorado State Rams
- Maryland Terrapins
- New Mexico State Aggies
- Duke Blue Devils
- Arkansas State Red Wolves
- Hawaii Rainbow Warriors
- UNLV Rebels
- Purdue Boilermakers
- UTEP Miners
- Rice Owls
- Cal Golden Bears
- Rutgers Scarlet Knights
- Louisiana-Monroe Warhawks
- Sam Houston Bearkats
- Wyoming Cowboys
- Boston College Eagles
- Toledo Rockets
- Charlotte 49ers
- Eastern Michigan Eagles
- Miami (OH) RedHawks
- UAB Blazers
- South Alabama Jaguars
- North Texas Mean Green
- East Carolina Pirates
- UMass Minutemen
- Northern Illinois Huskies
- Nebraska Cornhuskers
- UTSA Roadrunners
- Nevada Wolf Pack
- Virginia Cavaliers
- Bowling Green Falcons
- Florida Atlantic Owls
- Temple Owls
- FIU Panthers
- New Mexico Lobos
- Ohio Bobcats
- Jacksonville State Gamecocks
- Louisiana Tech Bulldogs
- James Madison Dukes
- Akron Zips
- Texas State Bobcats
- Southern Miss Golden Eagles
- Illinois Fighting Illini
- Kennesaw State Owls
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