Madden Ultimate Team fans might have just lost their favorite running back. Sanders, a Lions great, declared on social media on Tuesday that he will no longer allow EA Sports to utilize his name and likeness in Madden. Sanders did not explain why he pulled his license. The Hall of Famer has a lengthy history with EA Sports, having served as the cover player for Madden’s 25th anniversary edition in 2013. Following Tuesday’s announcement, Sanders is unlikely to be in the upcoming EA Sports College Football game. While specifics on the revived game series are still trickling out, there will most likely be some type of Ultimate Team including prior players on the game.
Ultimate Team, which allows users to create their own rosters of current players, legends, and celebrities, has become a significant source of revenue for EA Sports and a standard throughout its sports franchises. The mode apparently produces more than $1 billion in annual income. Sanders has always been a favorite among Madden gamers, thanks to his finest cards having 99 speed and excellent juke and spin move ratings.
Sanders’ announcement that he will not allow EA Sports to utilize his name, picture, or likeness is not surprising, and he is not the first former or present NFL player or coach to do so. As CBS Sports reported in 2019, former New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick was not included in the game during his tenure in Foxborough because he was not a member of the NFL Coaches Association, with whom EA Sports has a contract to include coaches in the popular video game.
Sanders’ departure with EA Sports and its organizations means that Lions and NFL fans will no longer be able to use him on their Madden Ultimate Team, beginning with the game’s latest edition this summer. It also likely eliminates the chance of Sanders, the 1988 Heisman Trophy winner, appearing in EA Sports’ highly anticipated “College Football 25” video game, which will be released later this spring.
Sanders was on the cover of “EA Sports Madden 25” in 2013, when the video game company celebrated its 25th year.
