The College Football Playoff Board of Managers, a group of FBS university presidents, has voted to expand the CFP from four to 12 teams.

The expansion is set for 2026, after ESPN’s current contract for the CFP expires.

• The new format will be made up of the six highest-ranked conference champions and six at-large selections after a vote from the board.
• The four highest-ranked champions will be granted a first-round bye.

The four-team model was the precedent for ESPN’s exclusive CFP contract, which reportedly pays out an average of $470 million a year.

ESPN is definitely interested in renewing CFP rights, a source previously told Front Office Sports. Previous discussions of adding expansion to the existing contract in 2024 would have created an extra windfall of $450 million, per SI.

The news also comes amid whispers that a Power 5 or FBS football breakaway from the NCAA might be more probable than ever.

Playoff Process

The next step will be for commissioners to figure out the granular details — a process that will likely begin during their next meeting, which is reportedly next week.

Conference realignment created bad blood between the commissioners, but ultimately the presidents appear to have found common ground.

Lululemon reported a 29% year-over-year increase in second-quarter revenue to $1.87 billion, surpassing analysts’ estimates of $1.77 billion. Net income reached $289.5 million.

Compared to the second quarter of 2019, revenue ballooned 112%, or $1 billion. 

Lululemon’s revenue increases stretched across the company.

• The company’s North American revenue jumped 28%, and international revenue spiked 35%.
• Direct-to-consumer revenue increased more than 30% — representing 42% of total net revenue — with comparable store sales increasing over 16%.

Lululemon opened 21 company-operated stores during the quarter, totaling 600 stores, and reported growth in every country that has an active store. Executives said on Thursday’s earnings call that store traffic increased 30%, while ecommerce jumped 40%.

The company ended the quarter with $1.5 billion in inventories, an 85% increase from last year.

Looking Ahead

Lululemon’s loyalty program, which was announced at the end of Q1, is launching this fall. It has a free tier and a paid tier at $39 per month that gives members access to product drops and exclusive items.

In July, Lululemon announced plans to open two stores in Spain in September, marking the company’s first new European market since 2019.

The company maintains its outlook of doubling net revenue to $12.5 billion from 2021 to 2026.

Broadcasters paid astronomical prices for NFL rights — and early returns on ad prices are showing why.

Media buyers are seeing record in-game rates for the upcoming season, and companies have been quick to buy up available inventory.

• Ad sales could bring in a total of around $7 billion in revenue.
• 30-second spots on national broadcasts have sold for as high as $860,000.
• National rates are up around 7% from last year.

More than 90% of available spots were bought during upfront ad sales. Much of that inventory was moved during the second quarter, as companies vied to get in early and avoid being shut out.

CBS, NBC, Disney, Fox, and Amazon are paying more than $110 billion to broadcast the league for 11 years.

Amazon’s deal for “Thursday Night Football” kicks off this season, though the company expects lower broadcast numbers, as viewers adjust to the league’s first streaming-only property.

Disney has also reportedly sold out 90% to 95% of its inventory for the upcoming NBA and NHL seasons on ABC and ESPN.

Sales Already Super

Fox began selling ads for next February’s Super Bowl 18 months before the game, seeking over $6 million for a 30-second window. Most of the available inventory has reportedly been snapped up. 

NBCUniversal saw ad real estate reach as high as $6.5 million for a 30-second spot during Super Bowl LVI earlier this year.