EA Sports is upping its payment to players for participating in the next iteration of the College Football game from $600 to $1,500, Front Office Sports has confirmed. Players will also receive extra revenue for appearing in promotional materials.
The Athletic first reported the news.
The licensing company OneTeam Partners, which is facilitating the deal, is still negotiating for the possibility of royalties on top of the $1,500 payout, a source tells FOS. Royalties are widely considered an industry standard for deals like this that involve group licensing.
The deal comes months after EA Sports College Football was reported to be the highest-grossing video game in 2024, sports or otherwise. It’s estimated to be in the top-50 most popular video games of all time.
In February, a new company called Pathway Sports and Entertainment—formed with the exclusive purpose of negotiating video game deals for football players—announced it was offering a $1,500 payment to any player who signed up to allow them to negotiate their video game rights. Pathway, however, is unable to negotiate on behalf of players for the 2026 version of the game, it appears. OneTeam has an exclusive, multiyear deal to negotiate on behalf of players, FOS confirmed.
Thus, the athletes who have already signed up with Pathway have already received their $1,500 payment, and have the opportunity to work with Pathway on negotiations next year. This year, however, they’ll sign up for the game through OneTeam Partners—and receive an additional $1,500.
“This is great news for college football players and aligns with our vision at Pathway, which is to provide the most professional, transparent, and legitimate NIL program for college athletes,” said Casey Schwab, founder of Pathway Sports and Entertainment. “We look forward to working with EA and others to achieve our long-term goals.”
