John Madden on cover of Madden 23

The late John Madden is the cover star for Madden 23, EA Sports announced Wednesday.

The Super Bowl-winning coach and legendary broadcaster died at age 85 in December.

This is the first time Madden has graced one of the video game's covers since the 2007 Hall of Fame edition. His last time as the main cover star was in 2000.

He was a prominent cover figure early in the series, which began in 1988; his likeness was used for the first 12 iterations of the game. However, NFL players have been widely used as cover stars since the turn of the century.

The video game will feature two versions of coach Madden leading opposing teams of "All Madden" players facing off in the old Oakland Coliseum. Remastered audio clips from Madden's broadcasting days will also return to the game.

Madden led the then-Oakland Raiders from 1969-78, making seven AFC title appearances and winning the Super Bowl following the 1976 season. He left the team with a 103-32-7 regular-season record - the highest win percentage in league history (.759) among coaches with a minimum of 100 games.

Madden retired unexpectedly from coaching at age 42 and spent the next three decades establishing himself as the voice of the NFL as a broadcaster, covering 11 Super Bowls for four networks from 1979-2009 and winning 16 Emmy Awards for outstanding sports analyst/personality.

The Pro Football Hall of Fame inducted Madden as a member of the 2006 class.

Madden 23 is expected to be released in August ahead of the start of the 2022 campaign.