College football fans can circle December 19 and 20 on their calendars — the 2025-26 College Football Playoff (CFP) officially kicks off that weekend. The expanded 12-team format returns with a Friday night opener followed by a Saturday tripleheader, giving fans nearly two full days of high-stakes football.
On Friday evening, one game will kick off at 8 p.m. ET. The next day hosts three contests: one at noon and two more in the afternoon and evening.
All first-round games will take place at campus sites, giving higher seeds the home-field edge. The top four seeds receive byes and will await the winners in the quarterfinals, which unfold across the New Year’s Six bowl games.
The Cotton Bowl Classic hosts the first quarterfinal on December 31, followed by the Orange, Rose, and Sugar Bowls on January 1. After that, the action heats up with the semifinals — the Fiesta Bowl on January 8 and the Peach Bowl on January 9, both airing at 7:30 p.m. ET.
The playoff journey will conclude under the Miami lights, with the national championship game scheduled for January 19, 2026, at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida.
All ESPN-network games will stream on the ESPN App, while TNT and truTV’s first-round matchups will also be available on HBO Max.
