NCAA Tournament expansion, explained: What we know about 76-team March Madness bracket in ‘final steps’ for 2027

NCAA Tournament expansion, explained: What we know about 76-team March Madness bracket in ‘final steps’ for 2027 originally appeared on The Sporting News . Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here . Changes appear imminent on the college basketball front.

On Tuesday, the NCAA inched closer to expanding the NCAA Tournament to 76 total teams, and it now seems as though change is imminent. The tournament traditionally began with 68 teams, eight of which played in the “First Four,” with the winners moving on to the Round of 64 — or, as it is colloquially known, “opening weekend. ” Now, the event is set to open with 24 teams in the preliminary round, with 12 winners moving on to the opening weekend.

Here is the latest on the tournament’s planned expansion and what it means for the field. MORE: 2026 college basketball transfer tracker NCAA Tournament expansion, explained: On Tuesday evening, ESPN reported that the NCAA has initiated the final process of expanding the men's and women's NCAA basketball tournaments to 76 teams. The tournament's new format will involve 52 teams automatically receiving bids from a conference tournament title or at large.

To complement this, the remaining 24 teams will play in a modified preliminary round that was formerly known as the First Four. It remains to be seen whether the league follows through, but early reports indicate there is enough momentum to get this done in the coming weeks. Only the tournament’s preliminary round would feature a field expanded to 76 teams; after the first 12 games, the tournament would begin in earnest with the traditional Round of 64.