Madden 23: Release Date, John Madden Cover and Ultimate Team Details

There was never much uncertainty regarding who would be on the cover of this year's Madden NFL video game. John Madden needed to appear on the front of Madden 23.

Madden, a former NFL coach and broadcaster, died last December at the age of 85. His name became synonymous with virtual football over the years, as the Madden NFL series has been releasing games since 1988. Madden endorsed the EA Sports series early and made sure it would feature 11-on-11 football.

So when Madden 23 comes out Aug. 19 (and three days earlier for those who preorder the All Madden edition of the game), it will feature the legendary Madden on the cover:

It will be the first time that Madden has been on the cover of the game since Madden 2000, as a player was featured every year from 2001-22. Madden had previously been on the cover in 1988, as well as every year from 1991-2000.

This has the potential to be an exciting edition of the game, as this marks the third year that it will be released on the newest generation of consoles (PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X). But things appear to be taking a big step forward this year with the FieldSENSE gameplay technology that will be featured in those versions of the game.

With the gameplay being more advanced, Madden 23 should look and feel like the most realistic version of virtual football yet.

One mode that gamers are sure to spend plenty of time with again this year is Madden Ultimate Team. It's always one of the most popular parts of the game, as users acquire cards via packs and the auction house to try to build the best possible team of players.

In addition to completing challenges, you can then take your teams online to battle other users. It can take hours to assemble one of the best teams (or a good bit of money put into the game, if you're trying to buy packs and cards), so it takes a lot of dedication.

This year, MUT should be similar to recent versions of the game mode. So if you've enjoyed it in past versions, you likely will again in Madden 23.

If you preorder the game now, you'll get two elite MUT cards (one offense and one defense) to help get your team started. And if you preorder the All Madden edition by Aug. 18, you'll also get an elite Headliners player.

EA Sports has already revealed the base elite cards that will be available when the game comes out. Here are the 10 highest-rated players among that set:

The four MUT Team Captain cards will feature Keyshawn Johnson, Eric Allen, Larry Csonka and Sam Adams. They will start with an 85 rating but can get upgraded to 88.

There will also be MUT Headliners cards featuring Joe Mixon and L'Jarius Sneed (both with 89 overall ratings), as well as MUT Heroes cards featuring Carson Wentz, Kwity Paye, Gabriel Davis, Divine Deablo and Donald Parham Jr. (all with an 86 overall rating).

Of course, there will be tons of cards, packs and bundles released over the next year, and they will only become better deeper into the game's cycle. So if you want the best possible MUT team, you'll have to keep working at it, even after the 2022 NFL season is over.