ESPN's MegaCast of the College Football Playoff National Championship Presented by AT&T delivers 30.1 million viewers - the most-viewed college football game in 11 years

ESPN's presentation of the 2025-26 College Football Playoff delivered a blockbuster postseason across all 11 games, headlined by a thriller between No. 10 Miami and top-seeded Indiana that will go down as the most watched college football game since January 2015, the second most watched title game of the CFP era and the No. 2 cable telecast on record.

The College Football Playoff National Championship Presented by AT&T scored 30.1 million viewers, the most-watched college football game since the inaugural CFP National Championship (33.9 million viewers, Oregon/Ohio State, 2014-15) and the second most-watched National Championship of the CFP era. The telecast, which was up 36 percent year-over-year, also ranked as the most-viewed non-NFL sports telecast since the 2016 World Series Game 7. The Hurricanes-Hoosiers showdown ranks as the fourth most-watched college football game in the past 30 years and the eighth most-watched ESPN production all-time. The audience peaked at 33.2 million viewers in the first half.

From start to finish, the expanded Playoff captivated viewers nationwide, with more programs than ever before making their debut in college football's premier postseason. The 11-game bracket also generated double digit year-over-year gains in the Quarterfinals, produced a top three all time Peach Bowl audience in the Playoff Semifinal, delivered a Quarterfinal audience at the Rose Bowl Game that eclipsed 18 of the previous 22 CFP Semifinals, and posted the two most watched First Round games in the early history of the round.

Across all 11 games, the College Football Playoff averaged 16.3 million viewers, up 4 percent year-over-year in the second year of the expanded format. In total, 37 billion minutes were consumed, also up 4 percent year-over-year.

National Championship MegaCast

The marquee matchup between Miami and Indiana delivered ESPN's second most-watched National Championship MegaCast offering with Field Pass with The Pat McAfee Show scoring 1.2 million viewers, the fourth best altcast all-time for college football.

Playoff Semifinals

The CFP Semifinal round averaged 16.8 million viewers. The Playoff Semifinal at the Peach Bowl drew 18.0 million viewers, a top-three audience on record for the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl, with a peak of 21.4 million in the first half. The Playoff Semifinal at the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl averaged 15.8 million viewers, peaking at 17.2 million in the final minutes as Miami clinched its berth in the National Championship.

Playoff Quarterfinals

Across four games, the CFP Quarterfinals averaged 19.3 million viewers, up 14 percent year-over-year. The Rose Bowl Game Presented by Prudential averaged 23.9 million viewers (up 13 percent year-over-year) and - at the time - ranked as the second most-watched sports event outside the NFL in the past year, the most-watched non-championship game of the 12 team CFP era, and larger than 18 of the previous 22 CFP Semifinal audiences. The Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic posted 19.0 million viewers (up 37 percent year-over-year), peaking at 21.6 million. The Allstate Sugar Bowl averaged 18.7 million viewers (up 18 percent year-over-year), peaking at 21.4 million. The Capital One Orange Bowl averaged 15.9 million viewers. Quarterfinal performances helped propel ESPN to its third most-watched day ever on January 1, 2026, with the network averaging 9.4 million viewers in the average minute (trailing only New Year's Day 2015 and 2018).

Playoff First Round

The CFP First Round Presented by Allstate featured strong multi-network performance on ESPN networks and TNT Sports, with the two games on ESPN and ABC averaging 14.9 million viewers, up 6 percent year-over-year - representing the two most-watched games in the two-year history of this round and, at the time, the fifth- and sixth-most-watched college football games of the 2025-26 season.

College GameDay Built by The Home Depot

College GameDay Built by The Home Depot drove additional momentum, scoring 2.6 million viewers leading into Monday night's matchup, up 45 percent year-over-year and the sixth best postseason episode ever. CGD at the Playoff Semifinal at the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl drew 2.9 million viewers, the third most-watched postseason College GameDay on record. The show averaged 2.4 million viewers across both First Round telecasts, led by 2.6 million viewers on Friday night at Oklahoma (up 87 percent year-over-year with two fewer hours) and 2.2 million viewers on Saturday morning at Texas A&M (up 6 percent year-over-year).

Countdown to the CFP National Championship Presented by AT&T

ESPN's digital programming had a banner night in Miami. Countdown to the CFP National Championship Presented by AT&T registered more than 10 million YouTube views Monday night, an all-time high. The show, hosted by Christine Williamson, Harry Douglas and Harry Lyles Jr., was live from the sidelines ahead of the title game, preparing fans with huge guests, breakdowns, predictions and much more taking ESPN YouTube viewers right up to the kickoff.

2025-26 College Football Playoff: Game-by-Game Viewership

Game Viewers (P2+)

CFP National Championship Presented by AT&T: Miami vs. Indiana 30.1 million

Playoff Quarterfinal at the Rose Bowl Game Presented by Prudential: Alabama vs. Indiana 23.9 million

Playoff Quarterfinal at the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic: Miami vs. Ohio State 19.0 million

Playoff Quarterfinal at the Allstate Sugar Bowl: Ole Miss vs. Georgia 18.7 million

Playoff Semifinal at the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl: Oregon vs. Indiana 18.0 million

Playoff Quarterfinal at the Capital One Orange Bowl: Oregon vs. Texas Tech 15.9 million

Playoff Semifinal at the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl: Miami vs. Ole Miss 15.8 million

Playoff First Round Presented by Allstate: Alabama at Oklahoma 14.9 million

Playoff First Round Presented by Allstate: Miami at Texas A&M 14.8 million

Playoff First Round Presented by Allstate: Tulane at Ole Miss* 6.2 million

Playoff First Round Presented by Allstate: James Madison at Oregon* 4.4 million

*Aired on TNT, TBS and HBO Max

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