What is March Madness?
March Madness is the NCAA Division I basketball tournament — 68-team, single-elimination brackets in both the men's and women's games, played across three March-April weekends to the Final Four. In 2026, Michigan won the men's title in Indianapolis and UCLA the women's in Phoenix — the Bruins' first NCAA women's crown.[1] [2]
How does it work?
Thirty-two conference tournament champions qualify automatically, with at-large bids and seeding set by selection committees on Selection Sunday; every round is win-or-go-home, which is the tournament's magic — the bracket, the upsets, the buzzer-beaters. The women's tournament, under the March Madness banner since 2022, now sets its own audience records.[1] [3]
Since when does it exist?
The men's tournament dates to 1939 — eight teams then, 68 since 2011 — and the women's to 1982. UCLA's men own a record 11 titles from the Wooden era; UConn's women lead with 12, the latest in 2025.[1] [2]
| Season | Pool / Format | Host cities |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | M: Michigan · W: UCLA | Finals: Indianapolis (M) · Phoenix (W) |
| 2025 | M: Florida · W: UConn | UConn's record 12th women's title |
| 2024 | M: UConn · W: South Carolina | UConn men back-to-back; Gamecocks undefeated |
| 2023 | M: UConn · W: LSU | |
| 2022 | M: Kansas · W: South Carolina | Women's tournament under the March Madness banner |
| 2021 | M: Baylor · W: Stanford | Bubble tournaments (Indianapolis / San Antonio) |
| 2020 | — | Tournaments canceled (COVID-19) |
| 2019 | M: Virginia · W: Baylor | |
| 2018 | M: Villanova · W: Notre Dame | |
| 2017 | M: North Carolina · W: South Carolina |
Men's (M) and women's (W) champions of the last ten tournaments.
Why does it matter?
It is one of America's biggest sporting events in its own right — a cultural fixture beyond sport — and the showcase where draft stocks and All-America credentials are made; NJCAA and NAIA tournaments extend the championship ladder below Division I.[1] [3]
References
- NCAA — March Madness. Accessed August 2026.
- NCAA — UCLA wins the 2026 DI women's basketball championship. Accessed August 2026.
- Olympics.com — March Madness 2026: full schedule and results. Accessed August 2026.