Friday, March 29, 2024

NCAA Tournament field to expand to 68 teams

April 22, 2010

The NCAA announced an agreement Thursday with CBS Sports and Turner Broadcasting Systems for a 14-year deal to present the NCAA men’s basketball Tournament from 2011 to 2024 for more than $10.8 billion.

As part of the agreement, the NCAA Division 1 Men’s Basketball Committee passed a unanimous recommendation to the Division 1 Board of Directors to increase the tournament field size from 65 to 68. There had been growing speculation of tournament expansion to as much as 96.

“We’re excited this agreement continues our long-standing relationship with CBS, a partner company that has captured the unique spirit of the collegiate model of athletics, and brings a new partner in Turner Broadcasting to the Championship and NCAA basketball,” NCAA Interim President Jim Isch said in a statement.

The deal amounts to $771 million per year, significantly more than the previous deal, which came out to be about $545 million per year.

For the first time in the 73-year history of the championship, all games of the tournament will be broadcasted live — across four networks: CBS, TBS, TNT and TruTV. Starting in 2011, opening-, first- and second-round games will be shown on all four channels. CBS and Turner will split the regional semifinals while CBS will cover the regional championship games and the Final Four through 2015.

Beginning in 2016, the regional finals also will be split by CBS and Turner while the two networks will alternate coverage years for the Final Four.

“In this agreement, we have created a new strategic partnership that not only makes this prestigious property an ongoing core asset in our stable of major television events, but a profitable one as well,” CBS News and Sports President Sean McManus said in a statement. “We look forward to working with our friends at Turner as together we combine our industry-leading media assets to maximize the value of this great NCAA Championship.”

CBS has held the broadcasting rights to the tournament since 1982.

The 2011 Final Four will be held at Reliant Stadium in Houston.

Support student media! Please consider donating to The State News and help fund the future of journalism.

Discussion

Share and discuss “NCAA Tournament field to expand to 68 teams” on social media.