The NCAA tournament will expand from 68 to 76 teams starting in 2027. The new format includes changes in team selection and the opening round structure.
Key points
NCAA tournament expanding from 68 to 76 teams
Changes in team selection process
New opening round structure
Video Player Cover
The NCAA tournament is going to have a new look and feel in 2027. The NCAA, and its various committees, agreed Thursday to expand both the menâs and womenâs basketball tournaments from 68 teams to 76 teams.
While that change was rumored for months, it was unclear exactly how the NCAA would proceed with eight new teams being added to the tournament.
Following Thursdayâs news, the organization outlined exactly how the new, 76-team NCAA tournament will work, including how teams will be chosen and how the opening round of the tournament will be different.
âą The menâs and womenâs NCAA tournaments will each feature 76 teams. The eight new teams being added to both events will be at-large selections.
âą The First Four is no more, and will be replaced by the Opening Round. The Opening Round will include the 12 lowest-seeded automatic qualifiers and the 12 lowest-seeded at-large teams.
âą The Opening Round will include 12 games, with six at-large and six automatic-qualifier games each. They will be played as triple-headers on Tuesday and Wednesday on the menâs side and Wednesday and Thursday on the womenâs side.
âą For the men, six games will be played in Dayton. The other six will occur at a âyet to be determined site.â Womenâs Opening Round games will be played on campus sites.
In addition to laying out those changes, the NCAA also put out a handy side-by-side graphic showing how the tournament will differ compared to years past.
What will the new 76-team NCAA tournament bracket look like?
With the Opening Round now containing 12 games, the NCAA tournament bracket will have a slightly different look. The 12 Opening Round games will be featured above the bracket and separate by the at-large teams and the automatic qualifiers.
The actual bracket shows where the Opening Round winners will slot into the first round.
And in case you were still confused and needed even more of an explanation for how the new tournament format will work, the NCAA put out a video in which Andy Katz laid it all out.
Once the Opening Round is over and the winning teams are slotted into the bracket, the NCAA tournament will proceed as normal the rest of the way. The first round, second round, Sweet 16, Elite 8, Final Four and national championship will all remain unchanged following Thursdayâs expansion.
Q&A
What are the new rules for the 76-team NCAA tournament?
The NCAA has outlined new rules regarding team selection and changes to the opening round for the expanded 76-team tournament.
When will the NCAA tournament expand to 76 teams?
The NCAA tournament will expand to 76 teams in 2027.
How will teams be selected for the new NCAA tournament format?
The NCAA has specified new criteria for team selection, which will be detailed in their official announcements leading up to the tournament.
Related Articles
Soccer·Feature
Palace beat Shakhtar to book spot in first-ever European final
Crystal Palace secured their first-ever European final with a 2-1 victory over Shakhtar Donetsk, winning 5-2 on aggregate in the Conference League semi-finals. They will face Rayo Vallecano in Leipzig.
Sky Sports··1 min read
Sports
Bayern Munich open talks over Gordon move
Bayern Munich has started discussions with Newcastle about signing Anthony Gordon this summer.
Sky Sports··1 min read
NFL
ESPN identifies Panthers' biggest roster hole for 2026 NFL season
ESPN highlights the Panthers' biggest roster need for the 2026 NFL season.
Yahoo Sports··1 min read
Sports
đ„ Final settled! Aston Villa hammer Forest and Freiburg dump Braga
Aston Villa and Freiburg secure spots in the Europa League final!