CFP triggers 30-day negotiating window with ESPN amid expansion consideration

No one is saying the College Football Playoff is definitely expanding, but they’re certainly heading down that road.

The latest sign came Tuesday, when College Football Playoff leaders decided to trigger a mandatory 30-day negotiating window with ESPN, according to Ross Dellenger of Yahoo Sports.

“The move, if it happens, is not necessarily a commitment to expand,” wrote Dellenger. “However, the decision signals a strong interest in exploring the worth of a 24-team playoff field, the most-discussed option that has garnered support within the room of playoff officials.”

As goes Greg Sankey, so goes CFP expansion. And per Dellenger, the SEC Commissioner recently sent a memo to CFP Management Committee members outlining considerations he would accept for a 24-team field. Chief among them is the requirement that teams play at least 10 “qualifying events” to be eligible for CFP inclusion. The criteria would require teams to play at least 10 power-league games, effectively eliminating Group of Five schools but for one team that receives an exception.

Big Ten Commissioner Tony Petitti, who initiated the idea of a 24-team playoff, has reportedly expressed openness to Sankey’s concept, which would require a shift in that conference’s scheduling requirements.

With the SEC and Big Ten close to being on the same page, now may be the time to discuss the future of the CFP with ESPN, the event’s sole media rights holder, or take it to market to determine its true value.

The CFP and ESPN agreed to a six-year, $7.8 billion media rights deal through the 2031-32 season in 2024. ESPN also sublicenses several games to TNT Sports every year.

Playoff officials have until December 1 to decide if the current 12-team field will remain as-is or expand in time for next year’s postseason. That is also the deadline for conferences to notify their network partners if they are eliminating conference championship games, which will be necessary to account for a 24-team playoff field.

ESPN previously proposed a 20-team playoff field to the committee, but they rejected the idea.

The negotiating window may begin as soon as Wednesday, ESPN’s Heather Dinich said. ESPN must make its best offer to the CFP, taking into account the strong possibility of expansion and the presumed loss of conference championship game revenue. CFP leaders can either accept the revised offer or reject it and take the media rights to market.

As for how ESPN would handle a 24-team field and all the necessary games, they have many options, including further sublicensing more games to TNT or even Fox. But if the rights return to the open market, all bets are off.