By Tiffany Williams –
The College Football Playoff is doubling its field, expanding to 24 teams beginning with the 2027-28 season under a plan unanimously approved Monday by its Management Committee.
The decision dramatically enlarges the postseason: 23 games, 16 campus matchups and first-round byes for the top eight seeds. It also comes with a new agreement making ESPN the exclusive worldwide media rightsholder for the expanded playoff through the 2031-32 season, subject to sublicensing rights.
The current 2026-27 playoff will remain at 12 teams. The first national championship under the expanded format is scheduled for Jan. 24, 2028, in New Orleans.
Monday’s announcement moves the expansion process beyond the review disclosed Nov. 6, when the CFP said an agreement with ESPN connected to a potential 24-team field was in its final stages of consideration. The larger field is now approved, along with scheduling standards intended to encourage stronger nonconference competition.
Financial terms of the ESPN agreement were not disclosed.
“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.”
That statement from the CFP lays out the organization’s rationale. The practical change is substantial: Twice as many teams will qualify, and four times as many playoff games will take place on campuses as under the current format.
The 24-team field will include the conference champions from the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12 and SEC, with those champions determined by their respective conferences.
One additional place will go to the highest-ranked team from the American, Conference USA, MAC, Mountain West, Pac-12 or Sun Belt. The remaining 19 places will go to the highest-ranked teams still available in the CFP Selection Committee’s final ranking.
That structure makes the committee’s final rankings central to both access and positioning. Beyond the five designated qualifying places, 19 teams will enter through their ranking.
The stakes will also extend well beyond simply making the field.
Seeds 1 through 8 will receive first-round byes and host second-round games. Seeds 9 through 16 will host first-round games against teams seeded 17 through 24.
The difference between eighth and ninth will therefore be an entire round of competition. The difference between 16th and 17th will determine whether a team opens the playoff at home or on the road.
For a team without a bye, winning the national championship will require five playoff victories. A top-eight seed will need four.
The first and second rounds will each feature eight games, all played at the higher seed’s campus. Games in both rounds will take place Thursday through Saturday.
The expansion preserves the bowls’ role deeper in the tournament. Quarterfinals and semifinals will continue at the Cotton, Fiesta, Orange, Peach, Rose and Sugar bowl locations.
Those six games, combined with the 16 campus contests and the national championship, make up the new 23-game postseason.
CFP Board of Managers Chairman Dr. Mark Keenum praised the approval and the work behind it.
“I would like to commend the CFP Management Committee for their vision, diligence and collaboration in reaching this landmark decision, Executive Director Rich Clark for his steady leadership throughout the expansion process, and the CFP staff as a whole for their work and support. Opening the Playoff to more programs, more student-athletes and more fan bases across the country is great for college football. We look forward to seeing this expanded format come to life next season.”
The larger tournament also brings changes to the regular-season calendar and to how schedules will be evaluated.
Beginning in 2027-28, the regular season will always include two open weeks. The final regular-season games for that season are scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 27, 2027.
The CFP said the playoff will begin in the first full week of December, with each qualifying team receiving an open week before the first round. The top eight seeds will have two open weeks before their first playoff game.
Selection Day and additional key dates will be announced later.
The new scheduling standards distinguish between institutions in the four autonomy conferences and those in the six other conferences.
Each institution in the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12 and SEC will be expected to play at least 10 qualifying regular-season games. Conference games will count, as will nonconference games against opponents from those four conferences and Notre Dame.
Institutions in the American, Conference USA, MAC, Mountain West, Pac-12 and Sun Belt will also be expected to play at least 10 qualifying games. Their qualifying schedules can include conference games and nonconference games against teams from either conference group or independent institutions.
The CFP Selection Committee will give no weight to wins over more than one FCS opponent in a season.
That provision does not prohibit a team from scheduling multiple FCS opponents. It limits the credit those victories can receive in the selection process.
The Management Committee may grant waivers from the scheduling requirements in extraordinary circumstances.
The standards establish expectations for schedules, but the announcement does not set out an automatic exclusion penalty for a team that falls short of the 10-game benchmark. Their application will be an important part of how the expanded system operates.
Conference championship games remain a separate question. The CFP said each conference will determine their future.
Two longstanding college football events are also addressed in the plan.
No CFP games will be scheduled in conflict with the Army-Navy game. The CFP said its Management Committee worked with American Conference Commissioner Tim Pernetti, representing both academies, and CBS Sports to preserve the game’s protected window.
Heisman Trophy Weekend will move one week earlier. In 2027, it will take place Dec. 3-5.
The media agreement gives ESPN rights to the entire expanded playoff and continues its exclusive rights to associated programming, including the CFP Selection Show and weekly CFP Top 25 Rankings shows.
ESPN has been the playoff’s exclusive home since its inception in 2015. The new agreement extends that relationship into a substantially larger tournament.
“ESPN and the College Football Playoff have worked collaboratively for more than a decade to make the CFP one of the marquee events in all of sports, and we remain firmly committed to elevating it in its new, expanded 24-team format. We value the trust that the CFP has placed in us as its exclusive media partner, and our continued presentation of this premier championship further solidifies ESPN as the home of college football and the destination for college sports for years to come.”
ESPN Chairman Jimmy Pitaro’s statement accompanied a distribution plan that includes a larger ABC presence.
Beginning in 2027-28, at least three first-round games and at least three second-round games will air on ABC. That guarantees ABC at least six games across the tournament’s opening two rounds.
The agreement covers presentation of the 23-game playoff on ESPN and/or ABC while allowing ESPN to sublicense select games. That authority is in addition to the existing TNT Sports sublicense announced in May 2024.
As a result, exclusive ownership of the media rights does not mean every game must appear solely on an ESPN-branded channel. Further programming and distribution details will be announced later.
ESPN will also retain rights to simulcast games and offer MegaCast presentations across Walt Disney Company networks. Disney Advertising will remain the exclusive seller of the CFP Official Sponsor Program.
The expanded format will remain at 24 teams for the duration of the agreement, through the 2031-32 season.
Before that transition, the current 12-team playoff will conclude with the national championship at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas on Jan. 25, 2027. New Orleans will host the first championship of the 24-team era a year later, followed by Tampa Bay on Jan. 22, 2029.
The announcement settles the field size and the media partnership. Selection Day, additional calendar details and the full broadcast assignments remain to be announced.
For teams pursuing the championship beginning next season, the new targets are clear: Reach the field of 24, secure a home game by finishing among the top 16 seeds, or earn both a home game and a first-round bye by reaching the top eight.