EA has confirmed that the Madden NFL 25 Championship Series is returning this year alongside the release of the new game. The MCS is comprised of six tournaments in which top players will go head-to-head for huge prizes out of a total of $1.7 million across the whole event.
The MCS will start pretty soon with the early access release of Madden NFL 25. Over the following seven months, players will compete for big prize payouts in the lead-up to the prestigious Madden Bowl in February 2025. Players can win cash prizes from most of the competitions, but the Madden Bowl offers them the opportunity to get their own championship ring as the real-world NFL gears up for the Super Bowl.
Tune in and compete
There are three main components to the MCS this year. First is Kickoff Classic, which has valuable MCS points and $100,000 up for grabs. This tournament starts during Madden NFL 25‘s early access period, so only those who have pre-ordered the Deluxe Edition of the game can participate. This tournament rewards players who can adapt to the game’s new physics technology quickly and rise to the top of the leaderboards. All the important dates for Kickoff Classic are as follows.
- Registration Ends: August 15
- Ladder Play: August 14-15
- Online Eliminations: August 17-18
- Broadcast Finals: September 4
The second part of the MCS is Monthly Ultimate Challenges. As the name suggests, this competition requires players to put together the best Madden NFL 25 Ultimate Team possible and beat every competitor they butt heads with. From August to December 2024, there are four competitions for players to participate in, with a total of $600,000 in prize money for the taking. These competitions and their important dates are outlined below.
- Kickoff Challenge
- Registration Ends: August 25
- Ladder Play: August 24-25
- Online Eliminations: August 31-September 1
- Broadcast Finals: September 10-11
- Most Feared Challenge
- Registration Ends: September 29
- Ladder Play: September 21-22, 28-29
- Online Eliminations: October 5-6
- Broadcast Finals: October 23
- Unstoppable Challenge
- Registration Ends: October 29
- Ladder Play: October 26-29
- Online Eliminations: November 2-3
- Broadcast Finals: November 13
- Zero Chill Challenge
- Registration Ends: November 24
- Ladder Play: November 16-17, 23-24
- Online Eliminations: December 7-8
- Broadcast Finals: December 18
Finally, and perhaps most excitingly, is the Madden Bowl. This is Madden NFL 25‘s version of the Super Bowl and takes place in the weeks leading up to the real NFL’s iconic event. Players will compete in the weeks leading up to the event for $1 million in prize money and their very own championship ring. The important dates for this event are highlighted below.
- Last Chance Qualifier
- Registration Ends: January 11
- Ladder Play: January 11
- Online Eliminations: January 12, 14
- MCS 25 Playoffs
- Round of 14 & Quarter Finals: January 21-22
- Quarterfinals & Semifinals: January 29
- Madden NFL 25 Bowl
- Grand Finals: February 7
This year, EA aims to smash the viewership record set by the previous MCS, 99,000 peak viewers, and has teamed up with new sponsor USAA to chase that goal. This has allowed the competition to open up to competitors from Australia for the first time, meaning pros from the country can join those from the UK, Germany, and the US in battling it out for the top prizes.
The MCS may not quite have reached the same level of viewers as the ALGS, but it’s getting closer every year. With the competition opening up to more countries and having bigger prize pools, there’s so much more to play for, making it much more fun to watch, thanks to those high stakes.
Published: Jul 24, 2024 10:00 am