Your ‘Madden’ escape from the Eagles just got a little more realistic with real Linc ads included
Pond Lehocky, which has partnered with the Eagles since 2018, will have its signage displayed in the Madden NFL's version of Lincoln Financial Field, too.
The next time Eagles fans fire up Madden NFL, Lincoln Financial Field might look a little more familiar — right down to the advertisements.
The Eagles are the first team to participate in a program that brings real-world stadium sponsorships into the popular football video game, Electronic Arts and the NFL announced Tuesday.
The initiative, called the Madden NFL Virtual Stadium Sponsorship Program, allows official sponsors of all 32 NFL teams and the league to incorporate their existing stadium advertisements into Madden on consoles and mobile devices.
And the first company to make the jump from the real Linc to its virtual counterpart is Philadelphia-based injury law firm Pond Lehocky.
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The firm, which has partnered with the Eagles since 2018, will have its existing stadium signage displayed inside Madden’s version of Lincoln Financial Field. An image released by EA shows the firm’s name prominently displayed on the stadium’s video board.
“Lincoln Financial Field is one of the loudest, most recognizable home-field environments in the NFL, and our fans expect Madden NFL to capture that,” Brian Napoli, the Eagles’ senior vice president of corporate partnerships, said in the announcement.
“This program lets us bring the stadium our fans know into the game, including partners like Pond Lehocky who have been part of the game day experience in Philadelphia.”
EA developed technology that maps advertisements from physical NFL stadiums into their digital versions, aiming to make the game’s environments more closely resemble what fans see on Sundays.
Unlike traditional video game advertisements that can interrupt gameplay, the new sponsorship placements will appear as part of the stadium itself.
According to EA, gamers play more than 2 billion Madden NFL games annually across consoles and mobile devices, the equivalent of approximately 23,000 NFL seasons every day.
“Bringing real NFL stadium environments into Madden NFL makes game day feel more authentic while creating a natural extension of the sponsorships fans already see,” Alex Dao, EA’s vice president of advertising and sponsorships, said in the announcement.
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EA and the NFL did not announce which teams or brands would join next or disclose financial terms for participating sponsors.
For Eagles fans, the result is another detail bringing the video game’s version of Lincoln Financial Field closer to the real thing — even if that means seeing a few more advertisements while trying to score a touchdown.
How were we so wrong? Heading into the season, the Eagles’ defense was supposed to be their strength. After Monday’s throttling by the Cowboys, the group reached a new low, especially on the defensive line, where major offseason investments and commitments were made. Why has a unit that showed promise in training camp failed to live up to expectations? And how will the Eagles’ five-game losing streak influence the organization’s approach to the NFL’s impending trade deadline? The Inquirer’s Jeff McLane and David Murphy tackle these topics and more the day after the Eagles’ 38-21 defeat to Dallas. Listen here.
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