NCAA Tournament officially expands to 76 teams

The March Madness logo is seen at the Delta Center for the NCAA Tournament in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, March 20, 2024. | Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News

March Madness will look a little bit different starting in 2027.

The Division I Board of Governors voted on Thursday to officially expand the men’s and women’s NCAA tournaments to 76 teams, eight more than the current 68-team field.

The NCAA says that it will be able to “award more than $131 million in new revenue distributions to member schools participating in the basketball tournaments over the remaining six years of the NCAA’s broadcast agreements.”

“Expanding the Division I Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championships is the right decision for the student-athletes and programs that will now have access to the greatest events in college sports,” said Board of Directors Chair Tim Sands, president at Virginia Tech, in a press release. “As NCAA leaders, we are especially excited to provide additional, highly competitive games for fans who look forward to March Madness every year.”

The schedule for the men’s tournament will remain the same, with the Round of 64 starting on the Thursday after Selection Sunday.

What was previously called the “First Four” will be called the “March Madness Opening Round.” Three games each day per city will be played on the Tuesday and Wednesday after Selection Sunday in Dayton, Ohio, and a yet-to-be-named city.

The “Opening Round” will feature the 12 lowest-seeded automatic qualifiers and the the 12 lowest-seeded at-large teams.

“Teams will continue to be paired to face the closest opponent next to them on the committees’ overall seed lists, which serves to seed all 76 tournament teams,” the NCAA says.

Texas guard Tramon Mark (12), left, scores a go-ahead basket with 1 second remaining a First Four college basketball game in the NCAA Tournament against North Carolina State, Tuesday, March 17, 2026, in Dayton, Ohio. | Kareem Elgazzar