What time does EA Sports College Football 25 release?

College football is back in video games for the first time in nearly a decade with the upcoming release of EA Sports College Football 25. And while the game will arrive in a week, the specific release time is a little complicated, and there’s even a sneaky way that superfans can get on the gridiron a few days early.

Here’s when College Football 25 releases in your time zone, and how you can play it a few days early.

EA Sports College Football 25 release time: When does College Football 25 release?

EA Sports College Football 25 officially comes out on Friday, July 19, on both PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X. EA hasn’t made it clear what time exactly the game will be available, but this post will be updated when that information is announced.

How to play EA Sports College Football 25 early

If you pre-order the Deluxe Edition of the game, you can start your march toward the National Championship a little bit earlier. If you pre-order this version before July 18, you will be able to play the game starting on Monday, July 15, at 4 p.m. ET. Here’s when that is in your time zone:

• 1 p.m PDT on July 15 for the west coast of North America
• 4 p.m. EDT on July 15 for the east coast of North America
• 9 p.m. BST on July 15 for the U.K.
• 10 p.m. CEST on July 15 for western Europe / Paris
• 5 a.m. JST on July 16 for Tokyo

The Deluxe Edition also contains several Ultimate Team goodies, like an Alma Mater Ultimate Team Pack, a Cover Athlete Ultimate Team Pack, and a Bring Glory Home Ultimate Team Uniform, as well as 4,600 College Football Points, the game’s Ultimate Team currency. The Deluxe Edition of the game costs $99.99 on both PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X.

What to expect from EA Sports College Football 25

College Football 25 marks the virtual return of licensed collegiate football for the first time in a decade, and it looks like plenty has changed in that time. But just because this series has been on a break for 10 years doesn’t mean that College Football 25 is simply going to be a Madden clone. In fact, in the 20-minute gameplay video EA Sports released earlier this week, we can see plenty of unique features, like a highly upgraded option game, new animations, and a unique presentation for some of the most exciting stadiums and environments in college sports, like Penn State’s White Out games.

Along with those unique elements, the game will also feature upgraded versions of EA Sports’ classic game modes like Ultimate Team, Dynasty, and Road to Glory, which will let you take your own customized player and play out their collegiate career, from the earliest days all the way to the Heisman Trophy.