College Football Playoff Officially Expanding To 12 Teams Beginning In 2024-25 Season
Dec 1, 2022, 9:34 AM | Updated: 3:03 pm
The 2022 CFP National Championship logo is seen on the field before the game between the Georgia Bulldogs and the Alabama Crimson Tide during the 2022 CFP National Championship Game at Lucas Oil Stadium on January 10, 2022 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images)
(Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images)
SALT LAKE CITY – The College Football Playoff Board of Managers agreed to expand the CFP to 12 teams beginning in the 2024-25 season.
The first round of the expanded College Football Playoff will be held on Saturday, December 21. The games will be held at either the home field of the higher-seeded team or at another site designated by the higher-seeded school. The matchups will be the No. 12 seed at No. 5, No. 11 at No. 6, No. 10 at No. 7, and No. 9 at No. 8.
“We’re delighted to be moving forward,” said Bill Hancock, Executive Director of the College Football Playoff. “When the board expanded the playoff beginning in 2026 and asked the CFP Management Committee to examine the feasibility of starting the new format earlier, the Management Committee went right to work. More teams and more access mean more excitement for fans, alumni, students and student-athletes. We appreciate the leaders of the six bowl games and the two future national championship game host cities for their cooperation. Everyone realized that this change is in the best interest of college football and pulled together to make it happen.”
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𝗢𝗙𝗙𝗜𝗖𝗜𝗔𝗟 𝗔𝗡𝗡𝗢𝗨𝗡𝗖𝗘𝗠𝗘𝗡𝗧: The College Football Playoff will expand to 12 teams beginning in the 2024-25 season!
Details » https://t.co/O4ZiAOQ4HZ#CFBPlayoff 🏈🏆 pic.twitter.com/5ZTVGXTZbo
— College Football Playoff (@CFBPlayoff) December 1, 2022
College Football Playoff Expansion Format
The 2024 and 2025 seasons, the four quarterfinal games and two semifinal games will be played in bowls on a rotating basis. The 2024 quarterfinals will be played in the Fiesta Bowl, Peach Bowl, Rose Bowl, and Sugar Bowl. The Cotton Bowl and Orange Bowl will host the semifinal games.
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In 2025, the quarterfinals will take place in the Cotton Bowl, Orange Bowl, Rose Bowl, and Sugar Bowl. The Fiesta Bowl and Peach Bowl will host the semifinal matchups. Dates and times for the quarterfinal and semifinal games will be announced at a later time.
The national championship games are scheduled for January 20, 2025, in Atlanta, and January 19, 2026, in Miami.
“On behalf of the Management Committee and the Board of Managers, this is thrilling,” Hancock added. “It’s been a long process, but we are pleased that more teams and more students will have the opportunity to compete for the national championship beginning in the 2024 season. A new era of college football is about to begin. I look forward to it.”
The last piece to fall into place was when the Rose Bowl signed an agreement to join the expansion and give up their January 1 window.
