When will 16-team CFP Playoff come to effect if approved? Closer look at latest developments 

The 2024 season was the first year of the newly implemented 12-team CFP. Ryan Day and the Ohio State Buckeyes emerged as the national champions during the debut of this new playoff format.

However, there are now reports of a potential change taking place in the 12-team playoff format. This means there could be a possible expansion to allow a greater number of teams to compete for a chance at the national title.

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When will the 16-team CFP come into effect if approved?

Yahoo Sports' Ross Dellenger reported on the power commissioners meeting that was held in New York on Thursday. According to his tweet on X/Twitter, this meeting included a discussion about the implementation of a new CFP format starting in 2026.

While no final date for the change was discussed, they are expected to come to a conclusion on this matter and finalize a format during their spring meetings this month in Destin.

"The four conference commissioners held an in-person metting in New York on Thursday to discuss several issues, including a future playoff format, sources tell @YahooSports. Big Ten & SEC- they control future format- continue to favor multiple AQs for their conferrences," Dellenger wrote.

ESPN analyst Pete Thamel further shed light on the potential change to a 16-team format, adding that this is gaining more and more preference in these expansion talks.

"With the Power 4 commissioners meeting today in New York, sources said there's continued focus on a 16-team CFP starting in 2026. 'I would say that 16 is becoming more preferred,'" said an industry source. "It seems like 16 may be the preferred number, but there's no format decision."

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What will the automatic qualifiers look like in a 16-team CFP format?

According to Ross Dellenger, the SEC and Big Ten have the most influence on these decisions because of their dominance in college football. Thus, they both are aiming to have four automatic qualifiers each for teams in their conference.

The ACC and Big 12 will have two AQs each, while the Group of 5 conference possesses just one automatic qualifier, thus increasing the level of competitiveness. Apart from this, three spots will remain as at-large berths, with inner-league play-in games taking place to determine the contenders for the playoffs from a conference.

If the playoffs are expanded to 16 teams, then it will also result in a more exhausting schedule for teams that qualify to compete for the national championship. It will be interesting to see how the future of the playoffs shapes up in the coming days.