FC 25 cover athlete: Why Jude Bellingham was chosen by EA Sports for 2024 video game

In the second year of the new standalone EA Sports video game franchise, Jude Bellingham has been selected as the cover athlete for this year's iteration of the famed annual release.

The Real Madrid and England youngster becomes the 29th individual to grace the video game franchise since its inception in 1993.

Having just led Real Madrid to the Champions League title before making a run to the Euro 2024 title match, Bellingham enjoyed a remarkable breakout season to earn his place on the cover.

Set to be released on September 27, very little is currently known about FC 25 and its new features or updates. What we do know now, however, is that an emerging superstar will grace its cover for the first time, and will likely feature prominently throughout the game.

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FC 25 cover athlete: Jude Bellingham

The next edition of FC will feature Real Madrid and England supernova Jude Bellingham on its cover, EA Sports revealed on Wednesday.

Bellingham is coming off a sensational season for club and country which has him firmly in the mix to win the upcoming Ballon d'Or.

Having only just turned 21 years old in late June, Bellingham was world-class in his first season in the Spanish capital. After joining from Borussia Dortmund in the summer on a €103 million which could rise as high as €133 million with add-ons, Bellingham was a smash hit in his first season at the Bernabeu.

The England star scored 19 goals and assisted six more in just La Liga action alone, tacking on another four goals and seven assists between the Champions League and other domestic Cup competitions.

Bellingham also helped England reach the final of Euro 2024, including a sensational last-gasp bicycle kick equalizer against Slovakia in the Round of 16 which saw the Three Lions progress after extra-time. Overall, through seven games at the UEFA international tournament, Bellingham scored two goals plus an assist in the final, which ended in defeat to Spain.

Why is it called EA Sports FC 25?

EA Sports produced the famous annual FIFA video game for 30 years, from its inception in 1993 all the way through the final edition of the game in 2023.

However, eventually the lengthy partnership became strained, and the two parties split last year, with EA Sports creating its own game independent of FIFA, calling it FC 24.

Thus, this game FC 25 is the second iteration of EA Sports' new franchise.

FIFA stated they would be shopping around its own licensing to find a new partner for continuing the FIFA video game brand, hoping to produce a competitor for the EA Sports product, but so far has yet to announce anything concrete since the split.

EA Sports FC, FIFA cover athletes by year