IRVING, Texas – The College Football Playoff (CFP) Management Committee today, November 9, unanimously approved Playoff expansion to 24 teams, beginning with the 2027-28 college football season.
The CFP also announced that it has reached a new media rights agreement with ESPN. This agreement makes ESPN the exclusive, worldwide rightsholder to the expanded 24-team Playoff, beginning with the 2027-28 season. The exclusive home of the CFP since its inception in 2015, ESPN (subject to the sublicensing rights noted below) will present all 23 games of the new format. Financial terms were not disclosed.
The agreement also includes continued exclusive rights to all ancillary programming connected to the Playoff, such as the CFP Selection Show, weekly CFP Top 25 Rankings shows and more.
- The 24-team CFP field will be comprised of the four conference champions from the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12 and SEC (as determined by their respective conferences), the highest-ranked team from the American, Conference USA, MAC, Mountain West, Pac-12, OR Sun Belt; and the 19 highest-ranked remaining teams in the final CFP Selection Committee ranking.
- The CFP Management Committee has adopted scheduling standards that will enhance the regular season by encouraging scheduling of additional compelling non-conference, regular season matchups. These standards are outlined in the Fact Sheet section below.
- 16 of the 23 Playoff games will be played on campus (up from four), building on the success of the on-campus games from the current 12-team format.
- No CFP games will be scheduled in conflict with the historic Army – Navy game.
- CFP Quarterfinals and CFP Semifinals will continue to be played at the six CFP bowl partner locations (Cotton, Fiesta, Orange, Peach, Rose, Sugar)
Regarding expansion, the CFP issued the following statement:
“The decision to expand was driven by a desire to increase opportunities for FBS programs, student-athletes and fan bases to participate in the Playoff and have a chance to play for the CFP National Championship, while new scheduling standards incentivize institutions to schedule more compelling non-conference matchups during the regular season. The expanded format will feature 16 on-campus Playoff games, which will bring Playoff football to more students and local fans while providing a positive impact for campus communities.”
