Power Four leagues will play their final conference championship games this season after the College Football Playoff committee announced its expansion to 24 teams beginning in 2027.
“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,” the CFP said in its press release.
The five-year media deal with ESPN is reportedly worth almost $1.7 billion to televise the new format featuring the conference champions from the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12 and SEC, the highest-ranked team from the American, Conference USA, MAC, Mountain West, Pac-12, or Sun Belt, and the remaining 19 highest-ranked teams in the final playoff rankings. The Power Four conferences will determine their conference champion without a championship game.
With the six CFP bowl partner locations for the quarterfinals and semifinals remaining the same, the expanded playoff will move from four to 16 on-campus games in the first two rounds.
In an attempt to preserve marquee non-conference matchups like the home-and-home series scheduled between Texas and Notre Dame in 2028 and 2029, the committee created a standard of 10 regular-season games for Power Four conferences made up of conference games and Power Four opponents and Notre Dame.
The schedule changes surrounding the new format include two bye weeks during the regular season, an open week between the end of the regular season, and two open weeks for the top eight seeds.
“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,” said Mark Keenum, the chairman of the CFP Board of Managers. “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.”
