The 2027 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament will involve a total of 76 teams playing in a single-elimination tournament to help determine the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I men's college basketball national champion for the 2026–27 season.[1] The 88th edition of the tournament is scheduled to begin on March 16, 2027, and it will conclude with the championship game on April 5, 2027, at Ford Field in Detroit. This tournament will mark the introduction of the Opening Round and an expansion of the field of participants from 68 teams to 76.
 | |||||
| Season | 2026–27 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Teams | 76 | ||||
| Finals site | Ford Field, Detroit, Michigan | ||||
| |||||
Tournament procedure
editOn May 7, 2026, the NCAA announced that the men's and women's Division I tournaments will expand to 76 teams beginning in 2027. The field will consist of 32 automatic bids awarded to each program that wins a conference championship, and 44 "at-large" bids (an increase from 37) extended by the NCAA selection committee. The selection committee will then seed the teams from 1 to 76. 24 teams (the twelve lowest-seeded automatic qualifiers and the twelve lowest-seeded at-large teams) will compete in the "March Madness Opening Round" (an expanded version of the First Four); the winners of these games will advance to the main 64-team bracket.[2][3]
Schedule and venues
editThe following sites were selected to host each round of the 2027 tournament:[4]
Opening Round
- March 16 and 17
- University of Dayton Arena, Dayton, Ohio (Host: University of Dayton)
- TBA
First and second rounds
- March 18 and 20
- March 19 and 21
- Spectrum Center, Charlotte, North Carolina (Hosts: UNC Charlotte/Atlantic Coast Conference)
- Target Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota, (Host: University of Minnesota)
- KFC Yum! Center, Louisville, Kentucky, (Host: University of Louisville)
- Golden 1 Center, Sacramento, California (Host: California State University, Sacramento)
Regional semifinals and finals (Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight)
- March 25 and 27
- South Regional
- West Regional
- March 26 and 28
- Midwest Regional
- East Regional
National semifinals and championship game (Final Four)
- April 3 and 5
Detroit will host the Final Four for the second time, having previously hosted in 2009.[5]
Media coverage
editTelevision
editCBS Sports and TNT Sports will have US television rights to the tournament.[6] As part of a cycle that began in 2016, CBS will televise the Final Four and the national championship game.
Television channels
editStreaming
edit- HBO Max (only TBS, TNT, and truTV Games), ad free tiers only[7]
- Paramount+ (only CBS games)
Radio
editWestwood One will have exclusive coverage of the tournament.
See also
editReferences
edit- ↑ "NCAA reveals new 76-team bracket for DI Men's and Women's Basketball Championships". National Collegiate Athletic Association. May 7, 2026. Retrieved May 7, 2026.
- ↑ "NCAA reveals new 76-team bracket for DI Men's and Women's Basketball Championships". NCAA.org. 2026-05-07. Retrieved 2026-05-07.
- ↑ Borzello, Jeff (2026-05-07). "NCAA men's, women's basketball tournaments expand to 76 teams". ESPN. Retrieved 2026-05-07.
- ↑ "NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Committee Selects Final Four Sites". NCAA.com. November 22, 2022. Retrieved November 22, 2022.
- ↑ "Detroit To Host 2027 NCAA Men's Final Four At Ford Field". DetroitLions.com. November 22, 2022. Retrieved November 22, 2022.
- ↑ Bonesteel, Matt (April 12, 2016). "CBS and Turner lock down NCAA Tournament Through 2032". The Washington Post. Retrieved April 12, 2016.
- ↑ "Max To Keep Live Sports And News Within Standard And Premium Subscription Tiers No Additional Cost To Consumers". WarnerMedia.com. February 26, 2025. Retrieved June 13, 2025.