The 12-team College Football Playoff is being shopped around to interested networks, and NBC is considering pursuing becoming the new home of the CFP in 2026.
Preliminary discussions for media rights of the expanded national championship tournament are underway. NBC was among five media companies that made presentations. It’s believed that the next media rights deal for the 12-team playoff will involve multiple networks.
ESPN will air the quarterfinals, semifinals, and national championship game of the expanded playoffs in 2024 and 2025. CFP officials are also currently hearing pitches for rights to the first round. Those initial four games will be played on campuses.
With NBC starting its run this year as one of the new homes of the soon-to-be expanded Big Ten, pursuing the CFP makes sense.
“I think the College College Football Playoffs are a very unique, exciting package,” NBC Sports president of acquisitions and partnerships Jon Miller told Front Office Sports recently. “The expansion obviously brings a lot more attention and focus to the sport in December and January.”
At this point, it appears that about 10 media entities are interested in bidding for the CFP.
