Big college football playoffs approved for coming seasons
IRVING, Texas – The College Football Playoffs are taking the next step in their evolution towards a more competitive and entertaining postseason as the group announced on Tuesday the structure and dates for the 2024 and 2025 college football seasons.
These steps are the next move in the transition from a four team playoff system to a 12-team playoff format that is set to begin in 2024.
“We are pleased to be able to announce these game dates today,” said Bill Hancock, Executive Director of the College Football Playoff. “We appreciate the efforts of all the parties involved in finalizing this schedule. This is the next significant step in bringing clarity to the launch of the 12-team playoff format in 2024. We still have a lot of work ahead of us, but this is an important milestone along the way.”
The field of 12 teams will be comprised of the six conference champions ranked highest by the selection committee (no minimum ranking requirement), plus the six highest-ranked other teams. The ranking of the teams will continue to be done by a selection committee whose size, composition, and method of selection will remain substantially unchanged from the current arrangement. The four highest-ranked conference champions will be seeded one through four and each will receive a first-round bye. The other eight teams will play in the first round with the higher seeds hosting the lower seeds either on campus or at other sites designated by the higher-seeded institution.
The new schedule will be as follows:
2024 Season
First Round (On-Campus)
- Friday, December 20, 2024: One Game (evening)
- Saturday, December 21, 2024: Three Games (early afternoon, late afternoon and evening)
Quarterfinals
- Tuesday, December 31, 2024: Vrbo Fiesta Bowl (evening)
- Wednesday, January 1, 2025: Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl (early afternoon), Rose Bowl Game (late afternoon) and Allstate Sugar Bowl (evening)
Semifinals
- Thursday, January 9, 2025: Capital One Orange Bowl (evening)
- Friday, January 10, 2025: Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic (evening)
CFP National Championship
- Monday, January 20, 2025: Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta, Georgia
2025 Season
First Round (On-Campus)
- Friday, December 19, 2025: One Game (evening)
- Saturday, December 20, 2025: Three Games (early afternoon, late afternoon and evening)
Quarterfinals
- Wednesday, December 31, 2025: Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic (evening)
- Thursday, January 1, 2026: Capital One Orange Bowl (early afternoon), Rose Bowl Game (late afternoon) and Allstate Sugar Bowl (evening)
Semifinals
- Thursday, January 8, 2026: Vrbo Fiesta Bowl (evening)
- Friday, January 9, 2026: Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl (evening)
CFP National Championship
- Monday, January 19, 2026: Hard Rock Stadium, Miami Gardens, Florida