Preserving America's Game

What it does

• •Directs the Secretary of Commerce and Chairman of the FCC to coordinate with the College Football Playoff Committee, NCAA, and broadcast partners to establish an exclusive broadcast window for the Army-Navy Game on the second Saturday in December, during which no other college football game is broadcast.
• •Instructs the FCC Chairman to review whether public interest obligations of broadcast licensees would require the Army-Navy Game to remain a national service event.
• •Establishes as policy that no college football postseason games, specifically the CFP or other postseason games, be broadcast in a manner that directly conflicts with the Army-Navy Game.

Why it matters

• •The order asserts that the Army-Navy Game, held annually for over a century, is a symbol of national importance and morale-building event vital to the Department of War, and that scheduling conflicts with expanded college football playoffs undermine its national prominence.
• •The order seeks to protect a specific national tradition by coordinating federal agencies with private sports organizations and broadcast media to manage scheduling conflicts.

Who is affected

• •The College Football Playoff Committee, NCAA, and college football broadcast and media rights partners, who are directed to coordinate with federal agencies on scheduling.
• •The FCC, which is tasked with reviewing broadcast licensee obligations regarding the Army-Navy Game.
• •Military Service Academies and viewers of college football postseason games.

What happens next

The Secretary of Commerce and FCC Chairman shall coordinate with relevant organizations and agencies to implement the exclusive broadcast window, with the FCC to review public interest obligations of broadcast licensees.