Expanding the College Football Playoff is expected to be a primary objective for the sport’s power brokers in the coming months.

Notre Dame athletic director Jack Swarbrick is a key factor in those negotiations, and he explained the program’s position on the matter on Wednesday.

Swarbrick said Notre Dame sees 12 teams as the ideal expansion number. That number of teams would allow more players the chance to play in the College Football Playoff, Swarbrick said.

8-team playoff formats have also been discussed, per reports.

The format for the CFP’s eventual expansion will play a role in whether or not Notre Dame joins a conference. Swarbrick named access to the CFP as 1 of 3 factors that will determine Notre Dame’s longterm independence

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SEC commissioner Greg Sankey and Big Ten commissioner Kevin Warren are now both on the record as being against automatic qualifier spots in an expanded playoff. Warren previously aligned with ACC commissioner Jim Phillips in fighting for automatic qualifier spots.

There is no timetable for officially expanding the playoff. However, a new format wouldn’t be able to be implemented until at least 2025.