EA Delivers the Heart-Pounding Thrill and Excitement of Pure Competition
REDWOOD CITY, Calif. -- Aug. 15, 2007 Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:ERTS) today announced the start of the 2007 EA SPORTS(TM) Challenge Series which kicked off July 26 with the EA SPORTS Craftsman NASCAR Challenge in Indianapolis. The EA SPORTS Challenge Series is a series of gaming competitions taking place across North America over the next six months.
The EA SPORTS Craftsman Challenge kicked off its 'In-Store' competitions July 26 in Indianapolis, was in Nashville, Tenn., on Aug. 8-11, and continues this weekend in Bristol, Tenn. The competition is scheduled to hit 11 cities overall, giving players from across the country a chance to compete for bragging rights, cash and other prizes. Future stops along the 2007 EA SPORTS Craftsman NASCAR Challenge include: St. Louis, Mo.; Richmond, Va.; Loudon, N.H.; Dover, Del.; Talladega, Ala.; Charlotte, N.C.; Martinsville, Va.; Atlanta, Ga. The 'In-Store' Tournaments will be hosted at designated Sears and Kmart retail stores in each city. All Tournament play will be conducted using NASCAR 08 on the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system.
"The authenticity of the NASCAR experience is what makes gamers and NASCAR fans alike so competitive when playing NASCAR 08 and now we can deliver an official competitive environment for the best NASCAR 08 players out there," said Brian Movalson, EA SPORTS Marketing Director. "At our first two stops at Kmart and Sears stores in Indianapolis and Nashville we had eager competitors lined up out the door and enthusiasm for both the game and the upcoming races was palpable."
"This unique partnership between Craftsman and EA SPORTS is allowing us to bring Craftsman's NASCAR relationship with NASCAR fans to a gaming audience that is rapidly growing as well," said Scott Howard, Manager, Sponsorship, for Sears Holdings. "We're looking forward to bringing these exciting events to the store level at Sears and Kmart stores and to extending this partnership nationally through Xbox Live."
The 'In-Store' Qualifying Rounds competitions will be held over the course of three days in each city on the published Tournament schedule. Players emerging from the Qualifying Rounds with the fastest recorded lap times will advance to the Semi-Finals to compete for a trip to Florida and the Homestead-Miami Speedway and a chance at the $10,000 Grand Prize on November 18, 2007. (1)
Consistent with all other challenges in the EA SPORTS Challenge Series, the EA SPORTS Craftsman NASCAR Challenge also will have an online component. Registered online Tournament participants can compete with other registered participants for a trip to the finals rounds and a chance to compete along with the 'In-Store' Tournament winners for the $10,000 Grand Prize. For more information and to register for the online version of the 2007 EA SPORTS Craftsman NASCAR Challenge, please visit: http://www.easportsracing.com/challenge or http://www.craftsman.com/nascarchallenge for details to enter and to view the published Tournament dates, schedules and Official Rules. (2)
About EA SPORTS
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(R) hockey, NBA LIVE basketball, NCAA(R) Football, Tiger Woods PGA TOUR(R) and NASCAR(R) racing.
EA SPORTS is the center of the interactive sports experience through: Authenticity, Innovation, Competition, Lifestyle elements. Its immersion in the sports world extends beyond games into a rich sponsorship portfolio of activities and involvement: including the EA SPORTS All-American program, the EA SPORTS Maui Invitational, NBA Europe Live presented by EA SPORTS and more that has helped establish the company as a leading force in the world of today's athletes.
EA SPORTS videogames are developed and produced for videogame systems, personal computers, cellular handsets and the Internet. For more information about EA SPORTS, including newsletters, podcasts, and fantasy football action please visit http://www.easports.com.
About Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts Inc. (EA), headquartered in Redwood City, California, is the world's leading interactive entertainment software company. Founded in 1982, the company develops, publishes, and distributes interactive software worldwide for video game systems, personal computers, cellular handsets and the Internet. Electronic Arts markets its products under four brand names: EA SPORTS(TM), EA(TM), EA SPORTS BIG(TM) and POGO(TM). In fiscal 2007, EA posted revenue of $3.09 billion and had 24 titles that sold more than one million copies. EA's homepage and online game site is http://www.ea.com. More information about EA's products and full text of press releases can be found on the Internet at http://info.ea.com.
About Craftsman
Craftsman, the Official Tools of NASCAR, has sponsored the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series since it began in 1995. According to a 2004 EquiTrend survey, Craftsman is rated the No. 1 brand in the nation for overall quality. Craftsman tools, merchandise and related services are sold nationwide through Sears Full-line stores, Sears Hardware stores, Sears Dealer stores, Orchard Supply Hardware stores, Kmart stores, and specialty catalogs and online at http://www.craftsman.com, http://www.sears.com and http://www.kmart.com.
(1)THE 2007 EA SPORTS CRAFTSMAN NASCAR CHALLENGE IN-STORE TOURNAMENT IS ONLY OPEN TO RESIDENTS OF THE 50 UNITED STATES AND THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA WHO ARE 13 YEARS OF AGE OR OLDER AT THE TIME OF ENTRY. NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. TOURNAMENT RUNS ON PUBLISHED DATES IN EACH CITY. VISIT http://WWW.CRAFTSMAN.COM/NASCARCHALLENGE FOR DETAILS AND TO VIEW THE PUBLISHED TOURNAMENT DATES, SCHEDULES AND OFFICIAL RULES.
(2)THE 2007 EA SPORTS CRAFTSMAN NASCAR CHALLENGE ONLINE TOURNAMENT IS ONLY OPEN RESIDENTS OF THE 50 UNITED STATES AND THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA (EXCLUDING AZ, CO, CT, ND, TN, AND VT) WHO ARE 18 YEARS OF AGE OR OLDER AT THE TIME OF ENTRY. PLAYERS MUST HAVE HAD INTERNET ACCESS, ACCESS TO AN XBOX 360 VIDEO GAME SYSTEM, NASCAR 08 SOFTWARE FOR XBOX 360, A VALID XBOX LIVE ACCOUNT, A VALID EA ONLINE ACCOUNT AND A VALID GAMESPY ID AS OF JULY 26, 2007, IN ORDER TO PARTICIPATE IN ONLINE TOURNAMENTS. NO ADDITIONAL PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. TOURNAMENT RUNS ON PUBLISHED DATES IN EACH CITY.
The 2007 EA SPORTS Craftsman NASCAR Challenge Tournament is sponsored by Electronic Arts Inc. NASCAR is not a sponsor of this tournament. This Sweepstakes is not sponsored by, endorsed by, or affiliated with Microsoft, or the Microsoft group of companies.
Microsoft, Xbox and Xbox 360 are trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies.
EA, EA SPORTS, EA SPORTS BIG and POGO are trademarks or registered trademarks of Electronic Arts Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries. NASCAR(R) and the NASCAR logo are registered trademarks of the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, Inc. John Madden, NFL, NBA, NHL, NCAA, Tiger Woods, PGA TOUR and FIFA are trademarks or other intellectual property of their respective owners and used with permission. Microsoft, Xbox and Xbox 360 are trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies. All other trademarks are the properties of their respective owners.