President Donald Trump said he will sign an executive order to create an exclusive broadcast window for the Army-Navy game, preventing it from competing with College Football Playoff games. The announcement came as as conferences met on Sunday to discuss expanding the playoff field.
Trump outlined his Army-Navy plan on Truth Social Saturday.
“Under my Administration, the second Saturday in December belongs to Army-Navy, and ONLY Army-Navy!” Trump said. “I will soon sign a Historic Executive Order securing an EXCLUSIVE 4 hour Broadcast window, so this National Event stands above Commercial Postseason Games. No other Game or Team can violate this Time Slot!!!”
Trump’s announcement comes as college football conferences met Sunday to possibly expand the playoff, going from 12 teams to either 16 or 24. An expansion would mean the Army-Navy game could be played at the same time as a playoff game. As of Sunday afternoon, there was no update as to whether an agreement had been reached.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, the executive order would benefit Paramount owner Larry Ellison the most because Paramount, which owns CBS, broadcasts the Army-Navy game and hold the broadcasting rights through 2038. The publication also added there is ambiguity surrounding the executive order itself.
“It is not clear what the executive order will say or what legal mechanism there is to enforce an exclusive broadcast window,” the publication said. “FCC Chairman Brendan Carr reposted Trump on Sunday, which is suggestive of the order being directed at his agency, which regulates broadcast TV stations.”
