The NCAA appears to be moving closer to expanding one of its most iconic events. According to Ross Dellenger of Yahoo Sports, the Men’s and Women’s NCAA Tournaments are expected to grow from 68 to 76 teams in the near future.
Under the proposed format, the expansion would add eight additional games to the current First Four structure. Instead of just four play-in matchups, 24 teams would compete in a new opening round, with 12 games played before the traditional first round begins.
In this model, 52
teams would automatically advance to the current round of 64, while the remaining 24 teams, made up of lower-seeded automatic qualifiers and the final at-large selections, would battle it out for the final spots. These games would primarily take place in Dayton, the longtime host of the First Four, with an additional site also expected to be used.
The change could be implemented as early as the 2027 NCAA Tournaments, though details remain fluid as the NCAA continues discussions with broadcast partners CBS and Warner Bros. Discovery.
If approved, this would mark the first expansion since 2011, when the field grew from 65 to 68 teams. Support for expansion has reportedly been led by conferences such as the ACC and Big 12, along with NCAA president Charlie Baker.
With more teams and more games potentially on the horizon, March Madness could soon become even bigger and even more unpredictable.
