NCAA.com | October 24, 2018 When is the 2018-19 College Football Playoff? Getty Images Share The fifth annual College Football Playoff starts on Saturday, Dec. 29, 2018 with two semifinal games that determine who will face off for the national championship a week later. The CFP National Championship is scheduled for Monday, Jan. 7 at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California. The two semifinals games will be played at the Orange Bowl and Cotton Bowl in Miami, Fla. and Arlington, Texas respectively. The first game will be played at 4 p.m. ET, and the second at 8 p.m. ET, with the order decided closer to the games. Both semifinals will be broadcasted on ESPN. MORE: 2018-19 bowl schedule and broadcast info | National championship history The national championship game will kick off at 8 p.m. ET at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California, and will also be available via ESPN. 2019 CFP schedule: EVENT DATE LOCATION Selection Day Dec. 2, 2018 | ESPN N/A Orange Bowl (Semifinals) Dec. 29, 2018 | 4 or 8 p.m. ET, ESPN Miami, Fla. Cotton Bowl Bowl (Semifinals) Dec. 29, 2018 | 4 or 8 p.m. ET, ESPN Arlington, Tex. CFP National Championship Jan. 7, 2019 | 8 p.m. ET, ESPN Santa Clara, Ca. The complete 2018-19 college football bowl season begins Dec. 15 with the Celebration Bowl, being played in last year's championship host city, Atlanta. Click here to see this upcoming year's bowl schedule and TV listings. Four schools are selected to the postseason College Football Playoff, which has determined the FBS national champion since 2014. A selection committee ranks the programs based on performance in conference play and championship games, strength of schedule and other factors. The first CFP top 25 rankings of 2018 will debut on October 30 and will be updated and released each week until the end of the regular season and conference championships. The final rankings will be released on selection day, Sunday, Dec. 20. Alabama, Georgia, Oklahoma and Clemson comprised last year's four-team field. In the championship game, Alabama beat Georgia 26-23 in overtime to claim its fifth title since 2009. RELATED: How the AP preseason football poll predicts the College Football Playoff Below is the list of previous CFP champions since the Playoff's conception in 2014: CFP history: YEAR CHAMPION RUNNER-UP SCORE LOCATION 2017 Alabama Georgia 26-23 (OT) Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta, GA. 2016 Clemson Alabama 35-31 AT&T Stadium, Arlington, Texas 2015 Alabama Clemson 45-40 University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale. Ariz. 2014 Ohio State Oregon 42-20 Raymond James Stadium, Tampa Bay, Fla. COLLEGE FOOTBALL NEWS: HOW THE AP PRESEASON POLL PREDICTS THE COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF FIELD HOW GETTING OFF TO AN UNDEFEATED START HELPS YOUR CFP CHANCES Way-too-early 2022 FCS playoff bracket predictions It's May and the FCS playoffs aren't until November, but that doesn't matter because we predicted the 24-team 2022 FCS playoff field anyway. READ MORE 9 potential breakout FCS football teams in the 2022 season Here's a look at the potential breakout FCS teams for the 2022 season. READ MORE Colleges and conferences with the most players drafted in the 2022 NFL draft Georgia had 15 players selected in the NFL draft, eclipsing the previous modern-era record of 14 picks, which was set by Ohio State in the 2004 NFL draft and later tied by LSU in 2020. The Bulldogs have five defensive players selected in the first round from a unit that allowed a national-best 10.2 points per game last season. READ MORE