EA Quits College Basketball; 2K Confirms 2027 Plans — Players May Be Left With Only One Official Game
EA Sports has told schools it is stepping away from the college basketball licensing race, and a day later rival publisher 2K confirmed it has a college basketball game in development with plans that point to 2027 and beyond.
What happened
On Sept. 4, EA Sports sent a memo to several schools indicating it would not be moving forward with college basketball licensing deals after many of those schools had already signed with 2K. A day later, 2K publicly confirmed the situation by saying, “Yes, it’s true.”
Additionally, 2K said, “We’ve got big plans for 2027 and beyond,” which the company provided as a timeline hint for its college basketball project.
Licensing and rights
EA holds an exclusive NFL licensing deal for its Madden franchise; more details on that arrangement are available on this page. Meanwhile, 2K remains the primary publisher for professional basketball simulation games through its NBA 2K series.
Consequently, 2K securing college basketball licenses from multiple schools positions it as the main publisher producing an officially licensed college basketball sim in the near term.
Series background
EA re-entered the college football market with EA Sports College Football 25 and followed with College Football 26. For context, there are professional and college franchise histories on both sides of the sports-sim market.
Games such as Madden receive yearly updates to modes like Franchise mode; those updates and reviews are covered by outlets including GameSpot’s Madden NFL 26 review and reports on specific Franchise improvements like the piece on changes in Madden 25’s Franchise mode.
On the basketball side, 2K releases annual NBA 2K titles; critics and writers have discussed the series’ live-service elements and use of virtual currency. For one analysis, see the piece on NBA 2K26’s economy.
Historically, EA has also produced basketball titles under the NBA Live brand; that series has been dormant since NBA Live 20 was cancelled in 2019.
What this means for players
With 2K confirmed as the studio working on an officially licensed college basketball game, 2K will be the primary publisher offering a licensed college basketball sim unless another publisher enters the market.
Meanwhile, both publishers currently use in-game currency systems or microtransaction elements in some modes—EA in modes such as Ultimate Team, and 2K in modes that use VC (Virtual Currency). For a look at EA-related company criticism, see the EA coverage on Wikipedia.
Also, readers interested in recent college football releases and critiques can consult IGN’s review of College Football 26.
Sources
Key references used in this story:
- Report on EA’s exclusive NFL licensing deal
- GameSpot — Madden NFL 26 review
- ClutchPoints — Franchise mode changes
- IGN — College Football 26 review
- Wikipedia — criticism of Electronic Arts
- Endless Mode — analysis of NBA 2K26’s economy
For a historical look at competition in sports sims, this older gameplay clip is often referenced:
