Report: College Football Playoff Finalizing 14-Team Format; Set to Start in 2026

The College Football Playoff's move to a 12-team field will be short-lived.

Starting in 2026, the CFP is expected to expand from 12 to 14 teams, per ESPN's Heather Dinich and Pete Thamel:

"The College Football Playoff is on the brink of moving one important step closer to an expected 14-team playoff that would begin in 2026, as the 10 FBS conferences and Notre Dame are pushing to meet a Friday deadline to agree to the next contract and inform the CFP if they will participate in the playoff in 2026 and beyond.

"Multiple sources told ESPN on Thursday that each league and Notre Dame are expected to sign a legal agreement by midday on Friday. Starting in 2026, the new agreement will codify the further financial separation of the expanded Big Ten and SEC from everyone else in college athletics. The Group of 5 commissioners have been in a difficult position without any negotiating power, but sources indicate they won't choose being excluded from the CFP."

The CFP is moving from four to 12 teams for 2024 and 2025. The field will consist of five automatic qualifiers—from the conference champions of the Big Ten, SEC, Big 12, ACC and the highest-ranked Group of Five conference champion—as well as seven at-large teams.

The format for a 14-team field has yet to be determined, but Dinich and Thamel noted that there is "expected to be ongoing discussion" on that matter.

The news on the College Football Playoff runs parallel with efforts to agree upon a new television contract with ESPN.

"Starting in 2026, ESPN is poised to spend an average of nearly $1.3 billion on the playoff for six seasons," Dinich and Thamel wrote.

"The deal would include the final two years on the current CFP contract, plus a new six-year agreement for the next iteration of the playoff, sources told ESPN."

For now, though, the CFP will triple to 12 teams. The schedule is already out for the 2024-25 postseason, which will begin with first-round games on Dec. 20 and 21 at on-campus sites. The quarterfinals and semifinals will consist of the New Year's Six bowl games over the next two weeks before the championship is held on Jan. 20, 2025.