Written by Glenn | 14 March 2011

The Madden Challenge could be coming back as soon as this year, according to one EA Sports representative. Chris Erb, vice president of marketing, said on Twitter the company is working on restoring the famed tournament series, which had been around for nearly a decade.

He posted these two notes on Twitter:

We are bringing Madden Challenge back in a big way. Can't talk about it yet though...

Can't say a word...in the middle of doing deals. But you guys will be happy!

In the middle of answering questions about a possible Madden Challenge, he reassured Madden players there will be a Madden 12 even if there is no NFL season; the players are currently under a lockout and it's unknown when the players and owners will come to a deal on a new collective barganing agreement, which would allow for a new season to start.

For most of its time, the Madden Challenge was a series of at least 15 single-elimination tournaments that took place throughout the nation, almost on a weekly basis. In its early day, the amount of tournaments for a year was 32. It soon dwindled down to about 15 in the late 2000s.

In 2009, Major League Gaming reached a deal with EA Sports to run the 2009 tournament series, running only three preliminaries plus the finals. However, those three preliminaries were all double elimination tournaments. There were plans for a 2010 season, but about a month before it was to take place the league said it wouldn't be running it, and no explanation was given.

Eric "Problem" Wright is the last Madden Challenge finals champion; he's the only two-time winner and the only person to win a combined six tournaments in the series.

This would clearly be a welcome word to the community. Hopefully it becomes a reality.