The College Football Playoff and ESPN finalized a media rights deal on Monday that locks in a 24-team playoff format starting in 2027, worth $1.7 billion over five years. The CFP’s own executive admitted fans don’t want the expansion.
Under the new 19+4+1 format, 19 teams qualify through automatic bids, four spots go to Power 4 conference champions (even though the expanded format eliminates conference championship games), and one at-large bid is reserved for the Group of 6 conferences.
CFP officials and ESPN executives praised the deal as a historic step for the sport. Fans online called it what it looks like: a cash grab dressed up as fan service.
CFP Executive Rick Clark didn’t deny it. He told reporters the organization knew fan sentiment ran against expansion and moved forward regardless.
“We’re aware of the fan sentiment and that many fans aren’t in favor of expansion. That was certainly weighed into the decision. It was considered,” Clark said. “Ultimately we just need to make a spectacular Playoff. I mean, the CFP has a responsibility to our fans, they’re the lifeblood of college football. We owe it to them to make this great. That really is our intent. We appreciate our fans. We did take into account their sentiment. That was rolled into this decision. But we decided to move forward with it.”
Fans weren’t buying the framing. One commenter offered a blunt translation of Clark’s remarks: “Allow me to translate….we know the huddled masses are yearning to be free from our ongoing fiddling. We also know, like sheep, we can lead them, they’ll watch and buy. We’re doing it anyway because….$$$$.”
Others were even more direct. “We hear you, but we don’t care,” one fan wrote. Another said, “It would have been better to say nothing than this.” A third summed up Clark’s statement as: “We heard what the fans think, and we don’t give a f*** .”
The first round of the new 24-team playoff is set to kick off on December 9, 2027.
