CFP to Double Playoff Field to 24 Teams for 2027 Season
The expansion eliminates Power 4 conference championship games and guarantees automatic bids for all major conference winners.
By Pedro Tanaka ·
The College Football Playoff organization announced on Monday that it will double the size of its postseason field starting with the 2027 season. The move expands the tournament from 12 teams to 24, marking the second major structural change since the playoff began in 2014. This expansion will place six times as many teams in the race for the national title as were originally included in the inaugural four-team format.
Under the new rules, every Power 4 conference champion will receive an automatic bid. The selection committee will grant 19 at-large spots to other teams. The highest-ranked Group of 6 school will also secure an automatic entry. The Group of 6 includes the American Athletic, Sun Belt, Mid-America, Mountain West, and Pac-12 conferences, along with Conference USA. The top 25 teams will continue to be ranked by the existing selection committee.
The structural shift requires the Power 4 conferences, comprising the Big Ten, SEC, ACC, and Big 12, to abandon their current conference championship games. Instead, conference champions will be determined by regular season standings and specific tiebreaker rules set by each league. This change removes the final weekend of November as a dedicated championship slot for these major leagues.
The tournament will feature 16 games played at home stadiums. The top eight ranked teams will receive first-round byes. Teams ranked nine through 16 will host opponents ranked 17 through 24 in the opening round. The second round will also occur on campus. The quarterfinals and semifinals will remain at the traditional New Year six bowl games: the Rose, Fiesta, Sugar, Orange, Peach, and Cotton bowls.
The organization stated that the decision aims to increase opportunities for FBS programs, student-athletes, and fan bases. New scheduling standards will also encourage institutions to arrange more compelling non-conference matchups during the regular season. The annual Army-Navy game will be moved to the slot previously used for conference championships, typically the first Saturday in December. No other games will be scheduled on that day.
Controversy has accompanied each previous format. In 2023, an undefeated Florida State team was left out of the four-team playoff after a late-season quarterback injury. Last year, Notre Dame fell below Miami in the final committee rankings for the 12-team field, despite leading the Hurricanes in every prior ranking. The 24-team format will be in effect for at least five seasons, running through the 2031-32 season. The next regular season will start the week before Labor Day and end in late November.
