College World Series 2025: Schedule, bracket, format and how to watch prestigious NCAA tournament

One thing is guaranteed at the 2025 College World Series: A new champion will be crowned. For the first time in the super regional era, no team that reached the College World Series in 2024 will appear in the tournament this year.

That’s quite the turnaround, and should guarantee the field is more wide open than it’s been in recent years, especially after reigning champion Tennessee was eliminated Sunday.

With the event completely up for grabs, which team will rise to the occasion and win it all? Here’s everything you need to know about the 2025 College World Series.

The 2025 College World Series begins Friday and runs through Monday, June 23 at the latest.

Two games are scheduled each day from Friday through Wednesday, June 18. The first game will start at 2 p.m. ET each of those days, with the second game starting at 7 p.m. ET.

The College World Series has not revealed which teams will play in those games yet.

If necessary, games will be played Thursday, June 19, ahead of the finals. Possible times have not been announced if games need to be played Thursday.

Game 1 of the finals is slated for Saturday, June 21 at 7 p.m. ET. Game 2 is scheduled for the following day, Sunday, June 22, at 2:30 p.m. ET. If a Game 3 is necessary, it will be played Monday, June 23, at 7:30 p.m. ET.

College World Series bracket

Here’s how the men’s 2025 College World Series bracket sits after play on Monday:

Arizona (44-19) will take on Coastal Carolina (53-11): Game 1, Friday at 2 p.m. ET
Louisville (40-22) faces Oregon St. (47-14-1): Game 2, Friday at 7 p.m. ET
UCLA (47-16) is matched up against Murray State (44-15): Game 3, Saturday at 2 p.m. ET
LSU (48-15) will play Arkansas (48-13): Game 4, Saturday at 7 p.m. ET

Six of eight teams made it to the College World Series on Sunday, while Coastal Carolina was the first team to advance on Saturday. The final spot was claimed by Murray State with a win over Duke on Monday night.

College World Series location

Since 1950, the College World Series has been held in Omaha, Nebraska. The event used to take place at Rosenblatt Stadium. It shifted to Charles Schwab Field Omaha starting in 2011, and will be held there again this year.

When the event first started in 1947, it was held in Kalamazoo, Michigan. The College World Series was played in Kalamazoo for two years before it moved to Wichita, Kansas, in 1949.

How many teams are in the College World Series?

A total of eight teams advance to play in the College World Series in Omaha. Those eight teams are determined after a 64-team tournament featuring NCAA Division I schools.

Those final eight teams then play in two brackets, with the winners facing off in a best-of-three series in the finals.

Is the College World Series double elimination?

The College World Series is a double-elimination tournament. That means a team must lose two games before it’s eliminated. Teams that lose their first-round games are put in an elimination bracket. One team eventually emerges from that bracket to play against the undefeated team in their bracket. An undefeated team must lose twice to get eliminated, which is why “if necessary” games are scheduled for June 19. If an undefeated team gets upset in Game 1, the second game will likely occur on June 19.

Once the finals begin, the two remaining teams will play a best-of-three series. The team that wins two games will be the champion.

College World Series channel, how to watch 2025 event

ESPN will broadcast nearly every single game of the College World Series. There are a few exceptions in 2025, however.

The 7 p.m. ET game on Sunday, June 15, will air over on ESPN2, likely due to “Sunday Night Baseball.”

Game 2 of the finals will air on ABC. That contest is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. ET on Sunday, June 22.

If a Game 3 is necessary in the finals, ESPN will broadcast that game.