With the deadline for a new format just hours away, it appears the College Football Playoff will stand pat.
According to Yahoo Sports’ Ross Dellenger, the CFP is expected to announce on Friday that it will keep its 12-team format for the 2026 season. The announcement comes after months of negotiations and a deadline extension, which ultimately wasn’t enough for the stakeholders involved to agree on a new format
At the heart of the standstill is an ongoing standoff between the SEC and Big Ten, the two conferences that hold the authority over a potential expansion of the field. While the SEC has favored a move to 16 teams, the Big Ten has been fighting for a 24-team field, with multiple automatic qualifier spots for the Power Four conferences.
Per Dellenger, the other conferences (and Notre Dame) have favored the move to 16 teams, with many viewing a doubling of the 12-team field to 24 teams — which would require calendar changes including the elimination of conference championship games — as too dramatic of a shift. Last week, ESPN’s Heather Dinich reported that the Big Ten was willing to immediately implement a 16-team field if the SEC would commit to an eventual expansion to 24 teams after a few years, a compromise it appears it wasn’t able to secure.
“A compromise was discussed among the four A4 commissioners that would have expanded the field to 16 for a set number of years before officials agree to shift to a 24-team bracket – a long-term guarantee that the SEC was against making in such an unpredictable environment,” Dellenger reported Friday.
But while the College Football Playoff will be remaining at 12 teams for a third consecutive season, changes to the format are still coming. The 2026 CFP will mark the first year in which the conference champion of each Power Four league (as well as the highest ranked G5 team) will be guaranteed playoff spots, in addition to Notre Dame if the Fighting Irish rank in the top-12.
As for the future of the format beyond 2026, expansion is still very much on the table. According to Dellenger, negotiations between the involved parties are expected to continue, as it appears to be a matter of not “if” but “when” the College Football Playoff will expand to at least 16 teams, if not more.
About Ben Axelrod
Ben Axelrod is a veteran of the sports media landscape, having most recently worked for NBC's Cleveland affiliate, WKYC. Prior to his time in Cleveland, he covered Ohio State football and the Big Ten for outlets including Cox Media Group, Bleacher Report, Scout and Rivals.