DATES, TIMES ANNOUNCED FOR 2025-26 COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF QUARTERFINALS, PLAYOFF SEMIFINALS AND NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
Three New Year’s Day Playoff Quarterfinals to Feature
New Start Times at Noon ET, 4 p.m. and 8 p.m.
The College Football Playoff (CFP) and ESPN today announced dates, kick times and broadcast information for the Playoff Quarterfinals, Playoff Semifinals and the national championship game for the 2025-26 edition of the postseason event.
The exclusive home of the CFP since its inception in 2015, ESPN is in the second year of its current expanded package, which also includes all four games of the CFP First Round and a sublicense of two games to TNT Sports/WBD.
The 2025-26 Playoff schedule includes a New Year’s Day tripleheader of Quarterfinal games on ESPN with new kickoff times: the Capital One Orange Bowl (noon ET), the Rose Bowl Game presented by Prudential (4 p.m.) and the Allstate Sugar Bowl (8 p.m.) will all start earlier than their traditional windows.
“This New Year’s Day schedule adjustment is the result of a thoughtful collaboration between the CFP, ESPN, the Capital One Orange Bowl, the Rose Bowl Game presented by Prudential, and the Allstate Sugar Bowl,” said Rich Clark, executive director of the College Football Playoff. “All three bowls shifting their start times allows us to place each game in an ideal window on New Year’s Day and provide the optimal viewing experience. New Year’s Day and college football are synonymous with each other, and these changes only strengthen that relationship.”
ESPN will present each of the four Playoff Quarterfinals, the two Playoff Semifinals and the 2026 CFP National Championship, slated for Monday, Jan. 19, at Miami’s Hard Rock Stadium. The CFP National Championship returns to Miami for the first time since the 2021 contest, marking the second straight season the national championship game will return to a city for a second time, after Atlanta hosted the title contests in 2018 and 2025.
The quartet of 2024-25 Playoff Quarterfinals scored multi-year viewership highs with the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl (17.3M viewers) becoming the most-watched pre-3 p.m. ET bowl game ever.
The CFP Semifinals produced the most-watched Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic on record (20.6M viewers) and the second-most-watched Capital One Orange Bowl in nearly 20 years (17.8M viewers). The 2025 CFP National Championship between Ohio State and Notre Dame delivered 22.1 million viewers, the most-watched non-NFL sporting event over the past year. The showdown peaked with 26.1 million viewers.
Further scheduling details, including Playoff First Round dates, times and networks, as well as full MegaCast information, will be announced later this year.
DATE TIME (ET) GAME PLATFORM
Wednesday,
December 31 7:30 p.m. Playoff Quarterfinal at the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic ESPN
Thursday,
January 1 Noon Playoff Quarterfinal at the Capital One Orange Bowl ESPN
4 p.m. Playoff Quarterfinal at the Rose Bowl Game Presented by Prudential ESPN
8 p.m. Playoff Quarterfinal at the Allstate Sugar Bowl ESPN
Thursday,
January 8 7:30 p.m. Playoff Semifinal at the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl ESPN
Friday,
January 9 7:30 p.m. Playoff Semifinal at the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl ESPN
Monday,
January 19 7:30 p.m. College Football Playoff National Championship ESPN
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About the College Football Playoff
The College Football Playoff (CFP) is the event that crowns the national champion in college football. The CFP Selection Committee ranks the top 25 teams at the end of the season. The 12 playoff participants consist of the five highest-ranked conference champions, plus the next seven highest-ranked teams. The four highest-ranked conference champions will be seeded one through four and receive a first-round bye. The schools seeded five through eight will host those seeded nine through 12 in first-round games. The quarterfinals and semifinals rotate annually among six bowl games – the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic, Vrbo Fiesta Bowl, Capital One Orange Bowl, Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl, Rose Bowl Game presented by Prudential and the Allstate Sugar Bowl. The College Football Playoff National Championship will be Monday, January 19, 2026, at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida. For additional information on the College Football Playoff, visit CollegeFootballPlayoff.com.
