Pablo Torre Finds Out
Pablo Torre Finds Out
The Athletic
"Play, Don't Pay": Meet the College-Football YouTuber Who Led a Gaming Revolt
36 minutes Posted Jul 21, 2026 at 9:00 am.
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Show notes

James Bordeaux was a 23-year-old in Kentucky, playing EA Sports College Football 27 for a living. Then Electronic Arts — the $50-billion mega-developer backed by the Saudis and Jared Kushner's private-equity firm — tried to extract so-called "microtransactions" from inside his beloved video game. So the furious creator put his mouth where his money is: leading the type of organic, populist revolt that has become all too uncommon in American life. Bordeaux explains to Pablo how fans won a battle... but why consumers may never win the war.


• Previously on PTFO: The "Pay-to-Play" Scheme That (Almost) Ruined Video Games, with Dan Soder


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