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Heather Dinich, ESPN Senior Writer
ESPN and TNT Sports have reached a five-year deal that will see TNT Sports sublicense select College Football Playoff games from ESPN starting this season, the networks announced Wednesday.
TNT Sports will host two CFP first-round games during the 2024 and 2025 seasons. TNT Sports will add two quarterfinal games each year from the 2026 through 2028 seasons, in addition to the first-round games. TNT will be the primary network airing sublicensed CFP games among additional TNT Sports distribution platforms.
ESPN will air all other CFP games on its network, including the National Championship Game. ESPN will also continue to manage the sponsorship program for CFP presentations.
“We are pleased to have reached this agreement with ESPN and are pleased to have TNT Sports continue to provide College Football Playoff games for years to come,” Louis Silberwasser, chairman and CEO of TNT Sports, said in a statement. This will give us the opportunity to be featured on our platform across the board.” “TNT Sports aims to delight fans and maximize reach and engagement for these iconic games.”
The CFP will expand from four to 12 teams this fall, with the top five conference champions and the next top seven participating. The top four champions in the conference will earn a top four seed and a first round bye.
The first round will be played Dec. 20-21 at the home campuses of the higher seeds, with teams seeded 5-8 hosting teams seeded 9-12.
“ESPN is pleased to sublicense to TNT Sports select early-round games from the College Football Playoff, which we’ve helped grow into one of the preeminent championship programs alongside the CFP,” said ESPN’s Rosalyn Durant, executive vice president of programming and acquisitions. “We’re confident in the impact and promotion this new agreement will bring as we enter a new, expanded playoff era.”
This year’s CFP quarterfinals are the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl (December 31st), Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl (January 1st), Rose Bowl Game (January 1st), and Allstate Sugar Bowl (January 1st). The Orange Bowl and Cotton Bowl will host the CFP semifinals, and the national title game will be played on January 20th in Atlanta, Georgia.
“We are excited to add TNT Sports, another highly respected broadcaster, to our College Football Playoff family,” CFP Executive Director Bill Hancock said in a statement. “Sports fans across the country are familiar with their work across a variety of sports venues over the past two decades, and we look forward to seeing what new and innovative ideas they bring to the promotion and distribution of these games.”
