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Everything you need to know about how the College Football Playoff bracket works

Originally posted on A to Z Sports | By Ian Valentino | Last updated Oct 7, 2024 1:12 PM ET

The 2024-25 College Football Playoff is a historic venture. With the introduction of a 12-team bracket, fans will enjoy unprecedented competition for the first time ever.

However, the new changes may confuse you about where your favorite team will play. We're breaking down how the College Football Playoff format works and have examples to give you a good idea of how things may play out.

How the College Football Playoff Seeding Works

Beyond the fact that 12 teams will make the CFP, certain rules govern how the rankings are made and which teams qualify.

The tournament will feature 12 teams, including the top five conference champions, as determined by the CFP selection committee's rankings, and the next seven teams with the highest rankings.

The top four ranked conference champions will be given seeds one to four and will skip the first round of games. Functionally, this likely means the Big Ten and SEC winners will be seeds No. 1 and No. 2. The ACC and Big 12 winners will be seeds No. 3 and No. 4.

The fifth-ranked conference champion will be placed in its ranked position or at seed No. 12 if it falls outside the top 12. Teams that are not conference champions but are ranked in the top four will start their seeding at No. 5. As a result, the seeding from 1 to 12 may differ from the overall final rankings.

The first round will involve the teams seeded 5 through 12, with higher-seeded teams hosting the games on their campus or at a location chosen by the higher-seeded team. The matchups will be No. 12, visiting No. 5, No. 11 at No. 6, No. 10 at No. 7, and No. 9 at No. 8.

There will never be a reseeding, but the selection committee will then place the four highest-ranked conference champions into the Playoff Quarterfinals, which will be hosted by bowl games. This placement will consider historical affiliations with the bowls and then the rankings.

For instance, if the SEC champion is ranked first, the Big 12 champion third, and the Sugar Bowl is a Playoff Quarterfinal location, the SEC champion would play at the Sugar Bowl, and the Big 12 champion would be placed in a different bowl.

Following the conference champions' assignment to the bowls, their opponents in the Playoff Quarterfinals will be set according to the tournament bracket.

This means the matchups will be No. 1 against the winner of No. 8/9, No. 4 against the winner of No. 5/12, No. 2 against the winner of No. 7/10, and No. 3 against the winner of No. 6/11.

The winners of the Quarterfinals will then move on to the Semifinals, where the winner of the No. 4 and No. 5/12 seed matchup will face either the No. 1 or No. 8/9 seed in the Capital One Orange Bowl. The same will happen between the winner of the No. 3 and No. 6/11 seed and the No. 2 and No. 7/10 seed matchups in the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic.

Finally, the 2025 CFP National Championship will be played at the Mercedes Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia.

2024-25 College Football Playoff Schedule and Locations

Let's illustrate exactly when and where each game will take place.

College Football Playoff First Round

All four of the first-round College Football Playoff games will be played on the campus of the more favorably-ranked team. One game will occur on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, while the other three will be played on Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024.