What happened: The College Football Playoff and ESPN have reached a preliminary handshake agreement to broadcast an expanded 24-team postseason format starting in the 2027 season. ESPN will pay an additional $345 million annually over a five-year span for the rights, per ESPN's Pete Thamel. The proposed structure grants automatic bids to the four Power 4 conference champions and the top-ranked Group of 6 champion, alongside 19 at-large berths.

Why it matters: Expanding to 24 teams eliminates Power 4 conference championship games and shifts the regular-season kickoff up one week to Week 0, wrapping the schedule around Thanksgiving weekend while keeping the national title game in January. The arrangement builds on earlier 24-team CFP broadcast discussions and doubles the current 12-team field, which reserves five automatic bids for conference winners and seven at-large spots.

What to watch: The preliminary agreement still requires formal finalization and sign-off from conference commissioners and CFP stakeholders before the 2027 calendar overhaul takes effect.