March Madness is inching closer to another expansion. NCAA officials presented at least two models of an expanded NCAA Tournament field to Division 1 conference commissioners on Wednesday.
One had an additional four teams in the field, while another had eight teams, according to a report from Yahoo Sports.
The earliest expansion would take place is the 2025-26 season, and any expansion to the men’s tournament would likely take place on the women’s side as well.
Officials declined to speak publicly about the details of the models, but the proposals include expanding from 68 to either 72 or 76 teams, with additional at-large selections as well as at least one more First Four site.
The expansion is proposed in part as a way to avoid eliminating the 28 mid-major conference automatic qualifiers – which has extensive fan support – and is popular with power conference leadership as a way to get more of their programs into postseason play.
Officials don’t want to impact the traditional 64-team bracket, meaning any expansion will be added to the play-in model. That raises additional issues, like what seed those play-in teams will be slotted into, and whether mid-major automatic qualifiers will be slotted into play-in games, which has been a hot button issue for conference commissioners.
NCAA Tournament expansion remains a controversial topic, with many fans feeling like March Madness is perfect as is and adding more mediocre high major programs only dilutes the product. But money talks, and power conference commissioners certainly have the sway to get something done in the not too distant future.