Madden NFL 26 has a release date. The next game in the long-running football franchise is set for August 14th, but the developers at EA Sports have only started to gear up the pre-release hype cycle. The team has also announced this year’s cover athlete. If you were paying attention to the NFL last season, the pick isn’t going to be too surprising. After all, one player dominated headlines last year, leading his team to a Super Bowl in his first season with the organization.
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That’s correct. Saquon Barkley will represent the Philadelphia Eagles and all of the NFL on the cover of Madden NFL 26. Unlike [the cover for](http://EA Sports College Football 26 Reveals Star Cover Athletes) EA Sports College Football 26, the deluxe edition cover doesn’t add any more players. That’s not too surprising. While the two games share some DNA (they’re both football games, after all), we haven’t seen EA add multiple athletes to the deluxe cover in at least a few years.
That said, it would’ve been a fun addition to add Jalen Hurts or Philly’s offensive line on the deluxe cover. Still, it’s definitely a nice design that is sure to please die-hard Eagles fans. Plus, it’s always a win when EA Sports doesn’t use Kansas City Chiefs superstar Patrick Mahomes on the cover. Better to spread the love around.
As far as when we’ll hear more about Madden NFL 26, the team announced that the game will get a full reveal on June 4th. At this point, we don’t know much about what’s coming this year, but with Barkley on the cover, we’re hoping that the reverse hurdle is still in the game. Madden NFL 25 added it last year after Barkley’s jaw-dropping highlight, and he was the only player who could do it. It’ll be fun to see if more players get the move in Madden 26.
One thing we do know is the rewards you’ll get for preordering various editions of Madden 26. Putting in a preorder for the standard edition gets you the base game, a cover athlete elite player item for Madden Ultimate Team, a Superstar Legendary XP Boost, and some coach ability points in Franchise.
Meanwhile, anyone who picks up the deluxe edition or grabs the MVP Bundle that includes the deluxe version of Madden 26 and CFB 26 will get all those rewards and much more. The most prominent addition is the three days of early access, starting on August 11th. You’ll also grab 4,600 Madden Points, several early access Solo Challenges for MUT, a Season 1 Elite player item choice pack, and a Player Card exclusive item.
Madden NFL 26 launches on August 14th for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC. This year’s edition will also launch on Nintendo Switch 2, so if you’re picking up the new console, you’ll have a brand-new version of Madden to jump into. Remember to check back on June 4th for the full reveal of Madden NFL 26. Here’s hoping the team gives us a few new or updated modes to dive into this year.