College Football 26 review: “Thanks to rivalries and dynasty, this is the greatest show on turf”

Red Sox vs Yankees. Barcelona vs Real Madrid. Packers vs Bears. Sports games have pretty much done it all over the last 40 years, with one notable omission: Rivalries. No sim has ever properly nailed the intensity and atmosphere of a heated derby – until now. College Football 26 goes hard on the passion and desire of local pride, focussing on the pull of bragging rights and authentic trophies. For the most part, it's exceptional.

There are 85 true-to-life trophies to compete for, from the ones everyone knows such as Paul Bunyan's Axe, to myriad niche choices. Mid-match overlays and commentary draw on statistical data going back to 1869, including the last meeting and all-time win-loss records. These stats carry through your franchise mode, and are reflected in future seasons. Critically, unlocking one makes it appear in your Trophy Room, where you can view the accolade and its history. It's an ingenious call, because even Play Now matches suddenly have a sense of purpose.

When did you last really care about losing an exhibition match to the CPU in Madden 25 or EA FC 25? In College Football 26 even casual results matter. 85 trophies mean 85 matches you'll want to play through, and win, regardless of your progress in Dynasty or Road To Glory – although you can earn trophies through those modes too. There's a meaning in every result: genuine joy over every victory, and blistering fury over every defeat. I launched my controller across the room after a late interception cost me a Navy win against Maryland. At stake was, um, a silver bowl of crabs.

Killers cameo

Spectacularly, these trophies drive you towards sampling different teams and playbooks and stadiums, soaking up College Football 26's incredible variety and depth as you go. It's thrilling, and almost educational. As Penn State against Minnesota you get to try their innovative two-QB 'swinging gate' plays. As Arizona, against Arizona State, you see footballs spiked onto the Wildcats' turnover sword each time you grab a pick or haul in a fumble. As Michigan, against Northwestern, you hear the crowd chant 'Mr. Brightside' to close out the third quarter. Win all three and the pots go in your Trophy Room. Just 82 more to go…

The replayability is off the charts before you've even touched the deeper, longer term modes. There's so much joy to be found in those too. Dynasty is again all-consuming, particularly with 300 real-life head coaches and co-ordinators to control – or face off with. Wear and tear accumulates across the season in more obvious, pronounced ways, meaning you need to micromanage your roster at all times. The addition of quick subs, accessed before any strap with a single D-pad press, aids this. An incredible touch is dynamic seasonal awareness. Kick off an August game at 6pm and it'll still be sunny, but as the weeks go by shadows draw in earlier and earlier.

As with the old NCAA games, recruiting is the unique pull. It again takes over your evenings and weekends, in the knowledge that seniors are leaving at the end of the season – so you constantly need to cycle in new talent to challenge for wins and bowl games. Everything's been deepened, but streamlined too: your 'team needs' list stays at the top of the recruiting screen, while subtle techniques such as Sway are accompanied by description boxes to help the more casual player. The transfer portal is also upgraded, with over 2,000 players looking to switch teams at the close of each season. It opens up more signing options – but means even more importance in keeping your stars happy.

Hat's all, folks

Road To Glory's tweaks aren't quite as effective. Here you focus on a single wonderkid, with a season of high school experience critical to your stock. Those real coaches, such as Penn State's James Franklin, pop up in chats to try to woo you, and you maintain your star rating by playing out four drives in each week's game. However, each drive exists in its own vacuum. Franklin challenged my created RB to run for 50 yards on a single play. This challenge was assigned to my third drive, and I failed it – but I'd already achieved a 50-yard run on the drive before, which the game (and Franklin) ignored, decreasing my star rating. Narrowing your list to three teams and teasing them before making a final choice on Hat Day is good fun, but that initial path to selection needs a rethink.

There's so much to do that gameplay draws you in without a second thought. College Football 25 was strong in this area, but you'll never go back after sampling its successor's tighter animations and hugely improved running plays. Guards show impressive awareness in terms of blocking, while tackles seal the edge properly, making pitch plays a delight. Situational awareness is superb too. DBs actually track the ball with their eyes, while ball-carriers can reach out for an extra yard by holding up on the right stick. Playbooks are packed with dazzling RPOs and cunning end-arounds. Defensive options are bolstered with manual safety adjustments and improved tackling, but this is college ball: you're going to concede points. Often it's about keeping an opponent to three, rather than allowing them into the end zone.

A word, too, for the soundtrack. It's astonishing. Along with 'Mr. Brightside' at Michigan, stadiums pulsate to 'Seven Nation Army', 'Pump It Up', and 'Sandstorm'. Even better are the marching band versions of 'Blinding Lights' by The Weeknd, 'A Bar Song' by Shaboozey, and 'Flowers' by Miley Cyrus. While most games tease you into muting the background music, College Football 26 will have you increasing the volume. Which happens to be a fitting metaphor for how it's improved over last year. This is College Football 25, with everything ratcheted up to eleven.

One of the reasons for its best-in-class performance is that while Ultimate Team is here, and sound, other modes – and those rivalries! – are given the space to outshine it. Long may that continue. The flaws are minor, and curious. You get to carry out the coin toss for Overtime, but not ahead of the initial kick-off. Challenging plays like fumbles feels odd, in that you get a replay and some commentary, but no visual signage such as an on-screen official. However, the brilliant far outweighs the baffling. Thanks to rivalries and dynasty, this is once again the greatest show on turf.

College Football 26 was reviewed on PS5, with code provided by the publisher.