Update 8/2 - EA has issued a statement on the matter:

"We made an unfortunate mistake with our Madden NFL soundtrack. Members of our team misunderstood the fact that while we don’t have rights to include Colin Kaepernick in the game, this doesn’t affect soundtracks.  We messed up, and the edit should never have happened. We will make it right, with an update to Madden NFL 19 on August 6 that will include the reference again.  We meant no disrespect, and we apologize to Colin, to YG and Big Sean, to the NFL, to all of their fans and our players for this mistake."

The original story follows.

Former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick is one of the most controversial sports figures today, thanks to his decision to kneel during the United States national anthem as a way to protest police violence against black Americans. Whether one agrees with Kaepernick's protest or not, it's still odd that EA has seemingly decided to censor his name in the upcoming Madden NFL 19.

As discovered by a fan on Twitter who has an early copy of Madden NFL 19, the song "Big Bank" by YG featuring 2 Chainz, Big Sean, and Nicki Minaj censors Colin Kaepenerick's name. Big Sean's verse in the song makes mention of Kaepernick with the lyrics, "You boys all cap. I’m more Colin Kaepernick," but as can be seen in the clip below, that line has been edited out.

Check out the censored version of Big Bank as it appears in Madden NFL 19 right here:

EA has yet to comment on the issue, so it's unclear why exactly this decision was made. However, it seems like a strange move, especially since past Madden NFL games have openly acknowledged Kaepernick's protest. One possible explanation is that Kaepenerick's name may be censored due to the former quarterback's decision to file a grievance against the NFL and its owners, but that's just speculation at this time.

Regardless of why Kaepernick's name is censored in Madden NFL 19, it's worth pointing out that this isn't the first controversy surrounding the game. A few months ago, the Madden NFL creative director left EA Sports, sparking concern from fans in the process, and there's also the GameStop battle royale joke that was considered by many to be in poor taste.

Not all the news concerning Madden NFL 19 has been bad, though. The game has some positive early reviews, and the fact that it's coming to PC for the first time since 2008 has also been met with enthusiasm from the community. Whether or not its launch next week will be overshadowed by the decision to censor Colin Kaepernick's name in the game remains to be seen, however.

Madden NFL 19 launches August 10 for PC, PS4, and Xbox One.

Source: Forbes