As we look ahead, you know what to expect out of much of the sports game lineup, but we’re also going to be getting some returning favorites to spice things up on this list of the most anticipated sports games coming out in 2024.
2023 was an interesting year for sports games with NBA 2K celebrating its 25th anniversary and FIFA rebranding itself as EA Sports FC. We also witnessed the long-awaited return of EA Sports PGA Tour bringing The Masters along with it. However, it was light on “surprise” hits since things like Super Mega Baseball or Undisputed were either known quantities or heavily followed before launch.
In some ways, 2024 seems to be shaping up to be similar with a couple franchises returning from long hiatuses while long-running franchises hopefully take strides in the right direction. The nice thing is, no matter what platform you’re on, there’s going to be a sports game for basically everyone. 2024 is going to be an interesting year for sports gaming, so let’s dive in and look at some of the anticipated titles.
Release Date: July 2024 (First Full Reveal in May)
Any list involving anticipated sports games in 2024 has to start off with the biggest elephant in the room. After many long and agonizing years, EA Sports is finally bringing back the iconic NCAA Football games (rebranded simply as EA Sports College Football) to the cheers of gamers all over.
One thing about sports is that it’s so hard to replicate the atmosphere and traditions of college sports. The crowds are unbelievably loud, many of the stadiums are unique and ancient, and you have the sounds of marching bands doing their thing. College ball is really an experience of its own and so it’s a lot of fun seeing it in action through video games.
There’s no official release date yet for EA Sports College Football, but it’s still looking like it’ll be coming out Summer 2024. It’s perfect timing as fans start to gear up for football season again both in college and the NFL while still enjoying the second half of the baseball season. Welcome back, college football video games.
MLB The Show 24
Release Date: March 19, 2024
One of the yearly regulars in the sports gaming world, MLB The Show is always a highly anticipated game and MLB The Show 24 will be no different as Vladimir Guerrero Jr. graces the cover. From seeing MLB 06: The Show quietly sitting on GameStop shelves to seeing where it is now, it’s remarkable how big the series has gotten.
In ’23, SDS brought in the awesome addition of the Negro Leagues, featuring many of its legends like player/founder Rube Foster. This year, they’re doing the same and once again making it a prominent aspect of the virtual baseball experience.
The always popular Road to the Show career mode and Diamond Dynasty will of course be huge highlights once again. Plus, MLB The Show 23 won our Sports Game of the Year Award so now it’s time to defend the belt.
WWE 2K24
Release Date: March 8, 2024
The WWE is undoubtedly one of the most popular entertainment brands on the planet and has been for a very long time. Its action, presentation, storylines, and huge personalities help define what the WWE represents. And the video games have been super popular for a long time too.
2K added WWE to its lineup years ago and they’re keeping things pushing with 2K24. This will be a fascinating year though as they celebrate 40 years of WrestleMania. So with this version of WWE 2K, players will be able to relive 21 of the 40 Mania matches. This had left gamers starching their heads a bit as they feel all 40 matches should be available. However, it could still be a great mode.
And with the rich history of WrestleMania being a focus, you can definitely expect a strong roster of wrestlers. In fact, 88 wrestlers — including variations of legends like the Undertaker with a 1998 version of WrestleMania icon — are confirmed so far. Heck, they even have the great Muhammad Ali on the roster.
BMX Streets
Release Date: Early 2024 (PC), Later For Consoles
So this is the one true “sleeper” anticipated sports game — at least on this list. BMX Streets is the successor to BMX Streets: PIPE that was on both PC and consoles. BMX Streets is probably one of the most realistic looking extreme sports games you’ll see with some heavy details on the bikes. Beyond the look, the trick animations look smooth as well.
Although there’s not some widespread anticipation around the game, it does have a unique level of hype to it because BMX does not get the same level of game variety as skateboarding.
The game is expected to release on Steam first before eventually making its way to consoles. With no BMX-only game on current gen at the moment, this could be a good opportunity for the folks at Mash Games to see if they become a mainstay in the sports gaming space.
NBA 2K25
Release Date: September/October 2024
You know NBA 2K is always one of the most anticipated sports game each year. Despite the downturn in reviews in recent seasons, virtual hoopers are always anticipating the game, hoping that the longtime series goes back to its glory days. There are also some who are happy where things are so this divide has led to many discussions within the huge 2K community.
With all that being said, it’s still always fun to see what gets revealed and what direction 2K goes with modes like The City/Neighborhood and MyCareer. It’s also fun to see what historic elements they bring to the game. The inclusion of MyNBA Eras was great, so it’ll be interesting to see how they expand on that.
There is no release date yet obviously as we’re still a long ways off, but in typical 2K fashion we’ll likely see NBA 2K25 drop in September or October. One other thing that will be interesting to see is if they’ll decide to move on from old-gen consoles (PS4 and Xbox One) and focus solely on the new consoles. On top of that, it will be interesting if we get a “true” PC release rather than it being based on the last-gen framework.
TopSpin 2K25
Release Date: TBA, Still Might Be 2024
Once a staple in the 2K Sports lineup, Top Spin had disappeared off of the gaming map for more than 10 years. Now, the popular tennis franchise is making a return after an official announcement offered us a teaser of one of the courts and some gameplay.
There still isn’t much detail on the game at all nor do we have an official release date. But considering the game was recently announced early in 2024, I could see the game releasing sometime in the Fall or so, right around the same time as NBA 2K25.
Although not much is known yet, the game looks really good from the 21-second teaser. We’ll see what else is revealed in the coming months. They’ve been pretty active on social media, just not revealing much at the time of this article.
Madden NFL 25
Release Date: Around August 2024
The long-running NFL franchise will return to the gridiron likely in its usual release window, which is sometime in August. Like a couple of other games on the list, Madden will be looking to prove itself to gamers, albeit we’ll have to see how it meshes with EA Sports College Football now as well. (We also have to wait to see what it’s called since Madden 25 was already used once.)
Game modes like franchise mode and Ultimate Team are always a highlight in terms of what new things EA adds or things they change. It’s also going to be a fun year for quarterbacks as there will be plenty of stud QBs coming out of the draft like Caleb Williams, Drake Maye, Michael Penix Jr., and J.J. McCarthy among others. It’s going to be great to see the ratings of these young offensive leaders.
EA Sports FC 25
Release Date: Likely September/October 2024
There’s no sports video game in the world as popular as EA Sports FC (formerly FIFA) thanks to football being the globe’s biggest sport. So if there is one game that has high amounts of anticipation each year, it’s definitely FC and it’s going to be no different with EA Sports FC 25.
Similarly to NBA 2K, EA FC has gotten a mix of reviews in recent years. However, that definitely doesn’t stop it from being one of the highest selling and most played games of the year every time. It’s still way too early to tell but there’s no doubt FC 25 will provide various modes to appeal to many football fans.
Whether it’s career or the ever popular Ultimate Team, there’s going to be a little something for everybody. It’s all just a matter of seeing what new features will be revealed.
NHL 25
Release Date: Fall 2024
For at least a four-year stretch or so during the Xbox 360/PS3 generation, EA Sports NHL was arguably the best sports game on the market, winning several Sports Game of the Year awards. Since then, while the game is still pretty fun, there are fans who feel like it has lost the magic that it once had.
They’ll get another shot to hit the ice with NHL 25, and with Chicago Blackhawks phenom Connor Bedard being one of the talks of the NHL season, my guess is that they put some emphasis on the young stars once again for this game.
We’ll also more than likely continue to see a heavy international presence and that’s always welcomed (dear NBA 2K, bring back FIBA). It’s still too early to tell, but it’ll be interesting to see what the folks at EA Sports have up the sleeves of their hockey sweaters this time.
