American Football Schedule in One Place - NFL & College Football
The most complete American football schedule resource on the web. Find game times, matchups, standings, and results for every team across every league – updated all season long.
Your Complete American Football Schedule Hub
At AmericanFootballSchedule.com, we’re built for football fans who want fast, accurate, and complete schedule information — without the noise.
Football in North America spans two major leagues, dozens of conferences, hundreds of teams, and thousands of games every season. We bring all of it together in one organized, easy-to-navigate resource so you spend less time searching and more time watching.
Our schedule database covers:
- NFL — All 32 teams, all 18 weeks, plus the full postseason through Super Bowl
- College Football — Every FBS program across all conferences, bowl season, and the CFP
- Game times and TV listings — Know when to tune in and where to watch
Whether you’re a die-hard fan who watches every game or a casual follower who just wants to catch the big matchups — this is the schedule site built for you.
How the NFL Season Works
The Regular Season The NFL regular season consists of 17 games played over 18 weeks, with each team receiving one bye week (a week off) during the season. The regular season typically runs from early September through early January. Games are played primarily on Sundays, with Monday Night Football and Thursday Night Football featured weekly matchups that draw some of the league’s largest audiences.
The Playoffs After the regular season, 14 teams qualify for the NFL playoffs: the 4 division winners and 3 wild card teams from each conference (AFC and NFC). The playoff bracket includes:
- Wild Card Weekend (Round 1) — 6 games
- Divisional Round — 4 games
- Conference Championships — 2 games (AFC Championship and NFC Championship)
- Super Bowl — 1 game, the NFL championship
The two top seeds in each conference (division winners with the best records) receive first-round byes, meaning they sit out Wild Card Weekend and enter in the Divisional Round.
The Super Bowl The Super Bowl is the annual championship game of the NFL, played between the AFC Champion and NFC Champion. It is typically held in early February at a neutral site stadium and is the single most-watched television event in the United States each year.
NFL Teams by Conference & Division
AFC — American Football Conference includes the AFC North with the Baltimore Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals, Cleveland Browns, and Pittsburgh Steelers; the AFC South with the Houston Texans, Indianapolis Colts, Jacksonville Jaguars, and Tennessee Titans; the AFC East with the Buffalo Bills, Miami Dolphins, New England Patriots, and New York Jets; and the AFC West with the Denver Broncos, Kansas City Chiefs, Las Vegas Raiders, and Los Angeles Chargers.
NFC — National Football Conference includes the NFC North with the Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, and Minnesota Vikings; the NFC South with the Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers, New Orleans Saints, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers; the NFC East with the Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants, Philadelphia Eagles, and Washington Commanders; and the NFC West with the Arizona Cardinals, Los Angeles Rams, San Francisco 49ers, and Seattle Seahawks.
How College Football Works
The Regular Season The college football regular season typically runs from late August or early September through late November. Each team plays between 11 and 12 regular-season games, a mix of conference games (which determine conference standings) and non-conference games (often scheduled early in the season).
Conference standings determine which teams advance to their conference championship game. Division titles, win-loss records, and head-to-head results all factor into the standings.
Conference Championship Games Most major conferences hold a championship game in early December, matching the top team from each division. Conference championships are often key stepping stones to the College Football Playoff.
The College Football Playoff (CFP) The CFP is a 12-team single-elimination tournament that determines the national champion. The top 12 teams in the final CFP rankings qualify — including automatic bids for top conference champions. The higher seeds receive first-round byes.
- First Round — 4 games hosted at campus sites
- Quarterfinals — Played at major bowl game venues
- Semifinals — Played at rotating New Year’s Six bowl sites
- National Championship — Neutral site, January
Bowl Season Even teams that don’t make the CFP can earn a bowl game invitation. There are over 40 bowl games played between mid-December and early January, rewarding teams with winning records with additional games and national TV exposure.
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FAQ
When does the 2026 NFL season start?
The 2026 NFL regular season kicks off on Wednesday, September 9, 2026, with the Seattle Seahawks hosting the New England Patriots at Lumen Field in a Super Bowl LX rematch. This marks just the second time in 75 years the NFL has opened a season on a Wednesday. The full 18-week regular season runs through early January 2027, playoffs begin in January 2027, and Super Bowl LXI is scheduled for February 14, 2027 in Inglewood, California. See our full NFL schedule for every team’s confirmed game dates.
How many games are in an NFL regular season?
Each NFL team plays 17 regular-season games over 18 weeks, with one bye week built in. Across the entire league, that adds up to 272 regular-season games. Teams also play three preseason games in August. The 2026 preseason opened with the Hall of Fame Game in Canton, Ohio on August 6, where the Carolina Panthers beat the Arizona Cardinals 33-30.
What is the College Football Playoff and how many teams qualify?
The College Football Playoff (CFP) is a 12-team tournament that determines the NCAA Division I FBS national champion. Teams qualify through conference championships and at-large selections based on the final CFP committee rankings. The top 4 seeds receive first-round byes and enter at the quarterfinal round. The bracket includes first-round games hosted at campus sites in December, quarterfinals at major bowl game venues, and semifinals and a national championship game in January to crown the champion.
When are the 2026 NFL playoffs?
The 2026 season playoffs begin on January 16, 2027 with Wild Card Weekend. Fourteen teams qualify — four division winners and three wild cards from each conference. The top seed in each conference gets a first-round bye. The bracket runs through the Divisional Round, the AFC and NFC Championship games, and Super Bowl LXI on February 14, 2027.