Complete March Madness schedule for the men’s 2026 NCAA tournament

The 2026 men’s NCAA tournament will begin on March 15, when the complete tournament bracket is revealed on Selection Sunday.

March Madness always brings the upsets, buzzer-beaters, Cinderellas and memorable moments. This year looks like another wide open tournament, with many strong teams across the top conferences. A total of 68 teams will make the tournament field. Of those 64, 31 are automatic qualifiers from conference tournament winners. Here is a list of every automatic bid who has already qualified for the 2026 tournament.

As of now, Michigan and Duke are the betting odds frontrunners to win the National Championship, followed by Arizona and Florida. Last season, Florida beat Houston in the National Championship and the Gators will be looking to see if they can repeat, just like UConn did in 2023 and 2024.

Games will kick off in Dayton, Ohio for the First Four round on Tuesday, March 17 and 18. First round games will start on Thursday, March 19 and continue on Friday, March 20. This year’s Final Four will take place in Indianapolis at Lucas Oil Stadium.

Below is the complete schedule for the 2026 NCAA tournament:

2026 NCAA tournament schedule, dates

Here is the schedule:

• Selection Sunday: Sunday, March 15
• First Four: March 17-18
• First round: March 19-20
• Second round: March 21-22
• Sweet 16: March 26-27
• Elite Eight: March 28-29
• Final Four: April 4 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis
• NCAA championship game: April 6 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis