Following the release of the series' previous entry in 2013, Electronic Arts (EA) settled a lawsuit brought by former college football players who argued their name, image and, likeness (NIL) were used without permission or compensation.

[3] As a part of the settlement, EA announced it would stop producing college football video games.

[15] College Football 25 was pitched to EA Sports by Daryl Holt, their current senior vice president and group general manager, in December 2019, being greenlit for development shortly after.

[20][21] That same day, ESPN's lead college football commentary team of Chris Fowler and Kirk Herbstreit announced that they would be featured as commentators.

ESPN studio host Kevin Connors confirmed his involvement on X (Twitter) the same day,[24] along with ESPN College Football studio and game analyst Jesse Palmer,[25] Rece Davis, and former College GameDay analyst David Pollack.

[26] On May 16, 2024, EA Sports revealed the main cover of the game, featuring Quinn Ewers, quarterback for the Texas Longhorns, Travis Hunter, wide receiver and defensive back for the Colorado Buffaloes, and Donovan Edwards, running back for the Michigan Wolverines, and officially confirmed the game would release on July 19, 2024, with early access for Deluxe Edition owners starting July 15, ahead of its gameplay reveal trailer the following day.

[28] The gameplay deep dive that released on May 31 unveiled features such as "CampusIQ," the gameplay system, which encompasses three fundamental pillars: "All 22+" which highlights the importance of individual players and their unique abilities, "134 ways to play," meaning that every team has their own unique playbook, and "Stories of Saturday," which seeks to encapsulate the raw emotions of these student athletes as they perform under intense pressure in hostile environments, put simply, a freshman responding far differently than a senior.

[30][31] A 21-minute gameplay trailer was premiered on July 8, 2024, featuring YouTuber Bordeaux and cover athlete Donovan Edwards.