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Study: Madden football creates more passionate and knowledgable football fans

by: Jake -
More On: Madden NFL 10
According to a study by the University of Oregon, football fans who play EA Sports Madden NFL Football become more passionate and knowledgeable fans. Well, I don't think you needed a study to tell you that, it's kind of obvious that Madden Football's going to make you a bigger and better football fan... Well, it's good to know Madden's good for something other than just having fun. It enhances your viewing experience when watching NFL football every Sunday.

STUDY FINDS PLAYING EA SPORTS MADDEN NFL CREATES MORE PASSIONATE &
KNOWLEDGEABLE FOOTBALL FANS



University of Oregon Survey Finds Madden NFL Players Are More Avid
Football Fans with Intricate Football Knowledge



REDWOOD CITY, CALIF; - AUGUST 20, 2009 – Does the Madden NFL franchise
create a better football fan? EA SPORTS, a label of Electronic Arts
Inc., (NASDAQ: ERTS), announced today the results of the Madden
Football IQ study, conducted by the University of Oregon’s Warsaw
Sports Marketing Center. This year’s study, which examined how fans
of Madden NFL also interact with the sport of football, determined
that fans who play the Madden NFL video game series are not only more
knowledgeable about the game of football, but are also more avid,
devoted fans.



“For the second year, we delved into the relationship that the Madden
NFL game forges with real football, and the study proved that it runs
very deep. Madden NFL fans are not only extremely knowledgeable about
the game of football, they are equally as passionate,” said Paul
Swangard, Managing Director of the Warsaw Sports Marketing Center at
the University of Oregon. “Twenty-one years of the Madden NFL
franchise has created a smarter and more devoted football fan.”



The study surveyed more than 9,000 EA SPORTS Madden NFL players and
football fans on both knowledge of the sport and fan avidity. Building
on a previous study, respondents’ football knowledge was tested
through five categories of football knowledge: Game Situations,
General Knowledge, History, Rules and Business of Sport.



In addition to testing respondents’ football knowledge and
game-playing habits, consumption of NFL football was also measured
through questions on viewing, attending games and purchasing habits as
it relates to the sport of football. Based on the results of the
consumption and knowledge portions of the study, the Warsaw Sports
Marketing Center developed a football “fan avidity” score to examine
the correlation of time spent playing Madden NFL and being a
passionate football fan.



According to the fan avidity score, the more hours playing the Madden
NFL game correlates to a more devoted and involved NFL fan. The most
passionate of these fans are less likely to miss a football game on
Sunday than most non-Madden players and are likely to attend at least
one NFL game per season.



Madden NFL Creates More Passionate Football Fans



According to the survey, Madden NFL players on average consume 35
percent more football content than those who do not play the game.
This measurement included information on viewing, attending games, and
purchasing habits related to the game of football.



One of the greatest differentiators between Madden NFL gamers and
those that didn’t play the game was football viewing patterns. When it
comes to watching football games, there is no NFL fan more reliable
than a Madden NFL player, as 42 percent of Madden NFL players
indicated they never miss a football game due to other activities.
Only 12 percent of non-Madden NFL players would make the same claim.



Madden NFL players also watch a lot of football. During the regular
NFL season, 43 percent of Madden NFL players watched 16 or more hours
of NFL programming per week – two-thirds of a day per week or more –
compared to only 15 percent of non- Madden NFL players. And it doesn’t
slow down much in the off-season, as 41 percent of Madden NFL players
watch six or more hours of football-related television per week
compared to only 14 percent of non-Madden NFL players.



Madden NFL players also bring their passion to their teams. Madden
NFL players more regularly attend NFL games: 58 percent of Madden NFL
players attend at least one game a year, compared to only 39 percent
of non-Madden NFL players.



“Each year, EA SPORTS provides an authentic football experience
through the Madden NFL franchise for fans to not only fuel their
passion, but also to learn the game of football,” said Peter Moore,
president of EA SPORTS. “The findings of the Madden Football IQ study
demonstrate that Madden NFL player’s knowledge and passion for the
game of football is unparalleled.”



Madden NFL Players More Knowledgeable About Nuances of Football



In this year’s study, the Madden NFL Football IQ survey found that
Madden NFL players continue to be more knowledgeable about the game of
football than non-Madden players. Out of a total of 25 questions,
Madden NFL players scored higher in all five survey categories.
Categories where Madden NFL players scored significantly better were
Game Situations and General Knowledge categories, where Madden NFL
players scored 19 and 12 percent higher, respectively.



Questions where Madden NFL players scored particular higher indicated
intricate knowledge of not only football mechanics, but also nuanced
knowledge of football terminology. Examples included:



67 percent of Madden NFL players correctly identified specific passing
routes versus 48 percent of non-Madden NFL players.



Madden NFL players also know their defensive schemes, with 81 percent
correctly identifying formations compared to 67 percent of non-Madden
respondents.



Madden NFL players get inside the game of football as well,
demonstrated as they correctly defined injury classification terms
more often than non-Madden NFL players. For example, 63 percent of
Madden NFL players correctly defined “Injured Reserve” versus 48
percent of non-Madden NFL players.



In the near future, fans will be able to take the Madden Football IQ
survey online when they visit the Madden NFL 10 page. Go to
www.maddennfl.easports.com for more information.



About the Madden NFL Football IQ Survey

The Madden NFL Football IQ survey was conducted by University of
Oregon’s Warsaw Sports Marketing Center in conjunction with Electronic
Arts Inc. in July 2009. The study included more than 9,000 surveys
that were conducted online. Survey results are nationally
representative, and the margin of error for is the survey is ± 3
percent.



About the James H. Warsaw Sports Marketing Center

Established in 1993, the James H. Warsaw Sports Marketing Center is
one of the world’s premier sports education and research programs.
Housed within the University of Oregon's Charles H. Lundquist College
of Business, it has become a model for sports-business programs across
the country. The program offers degrees at both the undergraduate and
graduate level and is active in industry outreach through its
consulting, research and annual events including the Women in Sports
Business Symposium.



About Madden NFL 10

Madden NFL 10 allows players to experience first-hand what it's like
to Fight for Every Yard. With all-new Pro-Tak animation technology,
players have more control over the outcome of each play. Whether
driving a receiver towards the first down, or battling for a fumble at
the bottom of a pile, the play won't end until the whistle blows.
Players can also the fight online with an all-new Online Franchise
mode, complete with 32 teams, NFL-style drafts and a custom league
webpage. Add to that the most immersive broadcast presentation to date
and Madden NFL 10 captures the authenticity and emotion of the NFL
like never before.



Madden NFL 10 is developed in Orlando, Florida by the award-winning EA
Tiburon studio. EA SPORTS™ is the leading interactive sports software
brand in the world, with top-selling titles and franchises including
Madden NFL football, FIFA Soccer, NHL® hockey, NBA LIVE basketball,
NCAA® Football, and Tiger Woods PGA TOUR®.



Madden NFL 10 will be available for the Xbox 360® video game system
from Microsoft, PlayStation®2 and PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment
systems, Wii™, PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) handheld entertainment
system and is rated E by the ESRB. Madden NFL 10 will also be
available for feature phones this month, and on the App StoreSM in
September.



To view the fact sheet for the Madden NFL Football IQ study please
visit: http://eaus.gamespress.com/release.asp?i=1213