College Football Playoff Nears 24-Team Expansion

The College Football Playoff is heading toward a 24-team field.

FOX Sports’ Ben Portnoy reported last week that the focus of CFP leaders has been on a 24-team format and conversations were ongoing. The deal is expected to come together in the near future, pending final approval.

According to a report from ESPN on Thursday, the CFP and ESPN are finalizing a deal to expand the field to 24 teams in 2027. The deal would give ESPN the rights to the additional games through the 2031 college football season. The proposed changes would also eliminate Power Four conference championship games. This would also move the start of the regular season up one week.

The addition of 12 new teams would require an expansion of the first round and the creation of a second round, both of which would likely be played on campus, while the traditional New Year’s Six bowl sites would also be integrated into the quarterfinal and semifinal slots, according to Portnoy.

An expanded CFP would also likely see the Army-Navy game moved to an exclusive window on what is now conference championship Saturday, the first week of December, while first-round games could begin the second week of December.