# College football sells another piece of its soul with CFP officially expanding to 24 teams

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/college-football-sells-another-piece-of-its-soul-with-cfp-officially-expanding-to-24-teams/
- Published: 2026-11-09T16:47:01+00:00
- Updated: 2026-11-09T17:36:09+00:00
- Original publisher: Fox News (publisher lean: Right)
- Original article: https://www.foxnews.com/outkick-sports/college-football-sells-another-piece-soul-cfp-officially-expanding-24-teams
- Topics: Football, Sport, World

## Key points

- The playoff grows to 24 teams in 2027.
- ESPN’s five-year deal is worth nearly $1.7 billion.
- Several major conferences are set to end their title games.

## Summary

The College Football Playoff will expand from 12 to 24 teams in 2027 under a new five-year agreement between the playoff organisers and ESPN. The change is intended to make room for more postseason games, but it will also end championship games in several major conferences, prompting concern that a longstanding part of college football is being sacrificed for money.

The deal is worth nearly $1.7 billion, and ESPN will cover costs linked to dropping title games for the ACC, Big 12, Big Ten and SEC. The SEC says its 2026 championship game, scheduled for 5 December in Atlanta, will be its last; Group of Six conferences are still deciding what to do. Former Alabama coach Nick Saban has criticised the expansion, arguing that 24 teams cannot realistically win the national title and that conference championships matter to players and fans.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.