Franchise file / Trip Hawkins, Electronic Arts

Madden

The yearly gridiron ritual

EA's American football franchise, conceived by Trip Hawkins and first released in 1988 as John Madden Football. It became Madden NFL in 1993 and has run yearly ever since.

Explore the franchise

1988
First game: 1
Series: Trip Hawkins, Electronic Arts
Creator

In the frameMadden NFL 24

One world. Many eras.

Choose your chapter

Open field. From John Madden Football to the Madden NFL name in 1993, then EA's move to Tiburon for Madden NFL 97, the series fought for its place as the home of NFL football.

Start with Madden NFL 2004

Your next late night

The essentials

Browse all games

Madden NFL 24

EA Orlando2023

Madden NFL 23

EA Orlando2022

Chapters

Series (1)

A new season, every AugustMadden NFLEA Sports' annual NFL series, named Madden NFL since the 1993 release of Madden NFL '94. Real teams, deep playbooks and a fresh roster each season.

A legacy worth revisiting

Football by the calendar.

Trip Hawkins approached John Madden in 1984 for his name and his football brain, and the first game reached the Apple II in 1988. The NFL licence followed in 1993, and the annual release has marked the start of each season ever since.