College Football Playoff will double in size to 24 teams starting next year

Power Four conference title games to be eliminatedFive teams will auto-qualify with rest picked by panelThe College Football Playoff will double in size to 24 teams beginning next year, bringing an end to a three-decade era of conference title games that used to be among the marquee events of the season.College leaders announced the new format Monday, after ESPN agreed to rework its contract to add the 11 new games. Terms were not announced, though ESPN said it was a deal for five years and an additional $1.7bn, on top of the $7.8bn contract that runs through the 2031 season. Continue reading…

ESPN and the Playoff announced that the format will include five teams and 19 selected by a panel, with Power Four conference title games to be eliminated The College Football Playoff will double in size to 24 teams beginning next year, bringing an end to a three-decade era of conference title games that used to be among the marquee events of the season. College leaders announced the new format Monday, after ESPN agreed to rework its contract to add the 11 new games.

Terms were not announced, though ESPN said it was a deal for five years and an additional $1.7bn, on top of the $7.8bn contract that runs through the 2031 season. The revenue generated from the new games will presumably make up for the estimated $345m the Power Four conference title games were worth. ESPN would then not be on the hook for $140m of the extra money due to cancellation of the title games, the network reported.