Arkansas and SMU Are the First Schools to Sell Their Real Sponsors Into EA Sports College Football

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Arkansas and SMU Are the First Schools to Sell Their Real Sponsors Into EA Sports College Football

Tyson Foods and Walmart now appear on Arkansas' virtual uniforms and field, and Texas Capital on SMU's, in a CLC program that gives schools a new revenue stream inside EA Sports College Football.

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A jersey patch used to stop at the stadium gate. At Arkansas and SMU it now goes into the video game. The two schools are the first to have their real-world uniform and field sponsors show up in EA Sports College Football, under a program announced Thursday by CLC, the Learfield division that licenses college brands to the game.

Tyson Foods, the Razorbacks' jersey patch sponsor across 19 sports, is on Arkansas' in-game uniforms, and Tyson and Walmart logos sit on the 25-yard lines of the virtual Frank Broyles Field, matching Razorback Stadium, according to the CLC announcement. SMU's in-game patch is Texas Capital, a Texas-based financial firm whose new all-sports deal with the Mustangs includes in-game rights. Operation Sports and the Sports Business Journal also reported the integrations.

A School-Specific Revenue Stream Inside EA Sports College Football

CLC created a gaming partnerships team, led by vice president Kevin Kimball, to sell these placements school by school and deliver them with EA. Neither CLC nor EA disclosed prices or the revenue split. CLC says the program gives schools a new source of revenue, and that more school integrations will follow as brands sign on. No other schools were named.

Why Arkansas and SMU Fit First

Both already sell the inventory in real life. The NCAA began allowing up to two commercial logos on uniforms this season, as the Arizona Daily Star noted when Arizona signed its first patch deal last week. The Arkansas Razorbacks and SMU Mustangs now carry those deals into the game, too.

Watch for which school is third. More on BallerTube's college football page.