The path to the College Football Playoff national championship begins with championship weekend.
Conference title games will set the stage for what could be unusually dramatic College Football Playoff reveal, with a crowded group of teams at the top of the rankings. A one-loss conference champion could be left out of the field, which underlines how small the margin for error has been for contenders.
Once the field is set, the countdown to the semifinals on New Year’s Day will begin. Those two games will determine who plays for a national championship the following week, in what fans can only hope is a more competitive game than last season.
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Here’s what you need to know about the College Football Playoff national championship, including the date and TV schedule.
When is the College Football Playoff national championship?
- Date: Monday, Jan. 8
- Start time: 7:30 p.m. ET | 6:30 p.m. CT
The College Football Playoff national championship will take place at 7:30 p.m. ET on Monday, Jan. 8, from NRG Stadium in Houston, Tex.
How to watch CFP national championship in 2024
- TV channel: ESPN
- Live stream: WatchESPN App, fuboTV
The College Football Playoff national championship game will take place on ESPN. Chris Fowler is set to handle handle play-by-play duties, with Kirk Herbstreit serving as color analyst for the broadcast.
Fowler and Herbstreit have called every CFP national title game since its inception in 2014, so this season marks 10 years of the championship game in its current form.
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CFP semifinals schedule 2023
This season’s College Football Playoff semifinal games will be the Rose Bowl and Sugar Bowl. Given the Rose Bowl’s tradition of playing on New Year’s Day, both semifinal games will be held on Jan. 1 rather than Dec. 31.
| Bowl | Teams | Date | Time (ET) |
| Rose Bowl | No. 1 Michigan vs. No. 4 Alabama | Monday, Jan. 1 | 5 p.m. |
| Sugar Bowl | No. 2 Washington vs. No. 3 Texas | Monday, Jan. 1 | 8:45 p.m. |
New Year’s 6 bowl schedule 2023
The remaining New Year’s 6 bowls — through which the Playoff semifinals rotate — will be played ahead of the two CFP semifinal games. The Orange Bowl, Fiesta Bowl, Peach Bowl, and Cotton Bowl will feature non-playoff teams.
Starting next season, all New Year’s 6 bowls will be part of the expanded College Football Playoff, rotating between the quarterfinals and semifinals.
| Bowl | Teams | Date | Time (ET) |
| Cotton Bowl | TBD vs. TBD | Friday, Dec. 29 | 8 p.m. |
| Peach Bowl | TBD vs. TBD | Saturday, Dec. 30 | Noon |
| Orange Bowl | TBD vs. TBD | Saturday, Dec. 30 | 4 p.m. |
| Fiesta Bowl | TBD vs. TBD | Monday, Jan. 1 | 1 p.m. |
| Rose Bowl (CFP semifinal) | No. 1 Michigan vs. No. 4 Alabama | Monday, Jan. 1 | 5 p.m. |
| Sugar Bowl (CFP semifinal) | No. 2 Washington vs. No. 3 Texas | Monday, Jan. 1 | 8:45 p.m. |
