Report: Apple, Amazon hold 'preliminary discussions' about College Football Playoff rights

As the College Football Playoff gets ready to expand to 12 teams next year, the question turns to what’s next for its media rights. The CFP’s current deal with ESPN is set to expire in 2026, and suitors are lining up — including some streaming companies.

Amazon and Apple are the latest companies to express interest in the CFP, Front Office Sports’ Amanda Christovich and Michael McCarthy reported. Both were in the mix for the Pac-12 when it was searching for its next media deal, and Apple’s offer was the last one presented before the schools started to scatter as part of a groundbreaking round of conference realignment.

While it’s not likely either streamer would get the semifinal or championship games, according to FOS, they could be part of a package that involves multiple networks.

Bill Hancock, executive director of the College Football Playoff, has said streaming could be a component of the next agreement because. He said it adds “another element” to the deal.

“Streaming adds another element,” Hancock said, via ESPN’s Heather Dinich. “We are not averse to streaming some of the games. I wouldn’t expect us to stream all of them, but right now nothing’s off the table.”

Amazon and Apple are the latest companies with reported interest in a slice of the CFP pie. NBC has also made its interest clear as the 12-team format gets started next year, FOS previously reported. The network holds a longtime partnership with Notre Dame to broadcast its games and recently became part of the Big Ten’s new deal, along with FOX and CBS. NBC has the primetime slot for Big Ten football.

Hancock said five companies sent representatives to make presentations at last week’s College Football Playoff meetings while “four or five others” have also expressed interest. But with streaming emerging as an option, the CFP could follow the NFL’s lead with streaming. This year, the NFL will air a Wild Card game on Peacock as part of a $110 million deal with NBC, according to FOS.

Talks about expanding the College Football Playoff went on for some time before an agreement was reached last year. Under the current 12-team format, the six highest-ranked conference champions will make the field while six more teams will receive at-large bids.

The future of the 6-6 model is still unclear given the latest realignment shakeup — specifically with the Pac-12’s future still uncertain. Hancock said it’s an unprecedented scenario, which is why everything is in somewhat of a holding pattern, as On3’s Eric Prisbell wrote.

“One thing that happened that I never would’ve dreamed would ever happen, happened,” Hancock said. “… It’s totally weird and everybody knows it.”