IRVING, Texas – The American Conference has announced its 111-game football schedule, including the 56-game conference schedule, for the 2026 season.
 
The nonconference schedule is highlighted by six games against teams ranked in the top 25 of the final 2025 Associated Press poll, including three matchups against College Football Playoff participants and a showdown with defending national champion Indiana.
 
Teams from the American will play nine nonconference games against the Sun Belt, five against the newly reformed Pac-12 and SEC, four against the Mountain West, Conference USA and MAC, and three against the Big Ten. Additional matchups include two games against the Big 12, one against the ACC, as well as games against Notre Dame and UConn.
 
In conference play, 52 of the 56 league games will feature at least one team that played in Bowl Season last year.
 
Each of the 14 teams in the American will play eight conference games in 2026. The top two teams in the final single-division regular-season standings will meet in the American Conference Football Championship, which will be played Saturday, December 5.
 
Some highlights of the 2026 schedule include:
 

• A compelling slate of 13 prime time conference games between Sept. 25 and Nov. 21 that will be on ESPN platforms. The series begins with Navy at UAB on Friday, Sept. 25. The American will have a conference game in prime time in nine consecutive weeks of the 2026 season.
• A series of games available exclusively on ESPN+ on the ESPN App, the leading direct-to-consumer sports streaming platform.
• A flexible Week 13 schedule to close the regular season. Florida Atlantic at East Carolina, Temple at Memphis, Tulane at South Florida, and Tulsa at UTSA will either be played Friday on Black Friday (Nov. 27) or on Saturday, November 28. Those selections will be made by Oct. 11.
• The American Conference Football Championship, which has been broadcast on ABC in each of the last 11 years, is scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 5.

 
The American Conference enjoyed a successful 2025 season, sending nine teams to Bowl Season, including Tulane earning a berth in the College Football Playoff as the 11 Seed. Teams from the American scored bowl wins against opponents from the Big 12, ACC, Conference USA and Mountain West. The American was one of only four leagues (joining the Big 12, Big 10, and SEC) to have three teams finish with 11 wins last season. The American was the only conference to earn wins over the Big 12, Big 10, SEC and ACC in non-conference play.
 
Kickoff times and television designations for the first three weeks of the season, as well as the season-long weeknight games, will be finalized by June 1. The rest of the schedule will fall under the customary 12-day and six-day selection processes. All dates announced today are subject to change.