Trump Signals Executive Order to Protect Army-Navy Game From College Football Playoff Clash
President Donald Trump plans to intervene in college football with an executive order to preserve the Army-Navy game from the College Football Playoff. His words are timely as major college football conferences debate expanding the playoff system, which might alter long-standing traditions.
Trump stated on Saturday that his government would reserve the second Saturday of December for the annual U.S. Military Academy-Naval Academy showdown. He stressed that this game should not conflict with other important college football postseason tournaments. According to his statement, the executive order would create a four-hour exclusive broadcast window for the Army-Navy game to ensure national attention.
Trump’s announcement date is connected to college football leaders’ conversations. Conferences discussed increasing the College Football Playoff to 16 or 24 teams on Sunday. A playoff expansion would increase the amount of games and increase the likelihood of scheduling one with the Army-Navy game, which Trump fiercely opposes.
The Army-Navy game is unusual in American sports. It represents the service academies and is considered a national event rather than a college football rivalry. Trump defended the game as special, distinguishing it from commercial postseason games.
Television rights holders would be affected by an exclusive broadcast window, according to industry observers. CBS, which broadcasts the Army-Navy game through 2038, would profit from national attention without playoff games. How such an executive order would be executed and what legal authority would be used to demand exclusive college football broadcast schedule are unknown.
The proposed order’s scope is unclear. According to reports, Trump has indicated strong intent but has not disclosed enforcement mechanisms. The FCC, which governs broadcast television stations, has been discussed in discussions after the announcement, but no guidance has been released.
As of Sunday afternoon, college football conferences had not agreed on playoff expansion. That unpredictability raises the possibility that playoff matchups could challenge the Army-Navy game in the future.
Trump’s announcement has politicized the future of college football. Although the proposed executive order may face legal and practical hurdles, it has renewed debate about how tradition, broadcasting interests, and postseason growth could coexist in the evolving sport.
Sources
White House
Federal Communications Commission
