For some schools and conferences, the NCAA Tournament can be a valuable source of revenue and media exposure. Find out how much each March Madness win is worth for your favorite schools in the NCAA Tournament.
The 2023 March Madness tournament is underway and the players are playing for more than just pride this year. Not only can college basketball players increase their NIL value but they can also earn money for their respective schools and conferences for their performances in the NCAA Tournament.
According to the NCAA revenue guidance, each win in the 2023 March Madness tournament will be worth approximately $2.03 million over a rolling six-year period. That means for each NCAA Tournament game that your team wins, it earns approximately $340,650 per year for the entire conference.
Last year, St. Peter’s helped earn $8.1 million for the MAAC as a result of the Peacocks’ appearance in the Elite Eight. Of course, that number pales in comparison to the $131 million in media exposure the university earned during its memorable NCAA Tournament run.
Let’s go over how schools earn money for their respective conferences during March Madness.
How Much Is Each March Madness Win Worth in 2023?
Each win in the NCAA Tournament win is worth one unit until the National Championship Game. Based on the number of units earned during March Madness, the NCAA dishes out rolling payments to each conference over the next six years.
The exact value of each NCAA Tournament win during March Madness won’t be known until 2029, but we’ve used the NCAA’s revenue guidance to provide some answers.
According to estimates from the Basketball Insiders experts, each win this year will be worth about $2.03 million.
Which Conference Made The Most Money in March Madness 2022?
There is more than one way for NCAA Conferences to earn money during March Madness.
Last year, the ACC earned more money than any other conference thanks to Final Four runs from Duke and North Carolina. Altogether, ACC teams earned the conference roughly $36.4 million to be paid in installments through 2028.
Meanwhile, the Big Ten earned just as much money despite not sending a team past the Sweet 16. In 2022, the Big Ten also earned $36.4 million in the Big Dance, as nine teams from the conference qualified for the NCAA Tournament.
Check out which conferences made the most money in 2022.
- ACC — $36.4 million
- Big Ten — $36.4 million
- Big 12 — $34.3 million
- Big East — $26.3 million
- SEC — $22.2 million
- PAC-12 — $14.1 million
Which College Basketball Conferences Sent The Most Teams To March Madness in 2023
With a nation-best nine teams in the Big Dance, the Big Ten is set to earn a considerable amount of money once again in 2023.
The SEC and Big 12 were also well-represented in the March Madness bracket, which could lead to some big paydays for the conferences down the road.
Here is a list of the NCAA conferences that sent multiple teams to the NCAA Tournament in 2023:
- Big Ten — 9
- SEC — 8
- Big 12 — 7
- ACC — 5
- Big East — 5
- Pac-12 — 4
- Mountain West — 3
- WCC — 2
- American — 2
