John Madden and EA Video Games

John Madden, the most famous NFL sportscaster of the last quarter century, announced his retirement today. Several generations of NFL fans have grown up listening to him as a color commentator alongside such accomplished play-by-play announcers as Pat Summerall and Al Michaels. Of course, his partnership with EA Sports has led to the remarkably successful Madden video game series. Today, EA announced that Madden's retirement will have no impact on their video game products. However, one wonders what will happen down the line. In 5-10 years, will the Madden brand resonate with young gamers who will not have grown up listening to John Madden on television? How will EA react? It will be interesting to watch how the brand develops and evolves during Madden's retirement.