07 Mar March Madness Sponsors: Top Brands At The NCAA Tournament
The NCAA runs a unique sponsorship model, offering brands broad access to all 90 NCAA championships as part of official partnerships through CBS and Turner Sports. However, March Madness reigns supreme as the biggest opportunity for lucrative sponsorship, giving companies buying into the NCAA access to what is by far the largest audience of any NCAA event.
In 2022, Elevate Sports published a report estimating brands received over $410 million in media exposure value from telecasts of the men’s and women’s March Madness tournaments, which doesn’t even factor in added exposure in social media clips and highlights. The sheer length of March Madness, three weeks with more than 120 games between the two tournaments, gives these brands extended exposure to fan bases across the country.
NCAA Corporate Champion Partners
Capital One
Along with in-game signage and traditional TV advertising, Capital One is the presenting sponsor for the NCAA’s official bracket challenges for both tournaments. They’re also sponsoring March Madness Fan Fest and the March Madness Music Festival the weekend of the men’s Final Four in San Antonio.
AT&T
Another big partner, AT&T is sponsoring a Block Party the Friday of the Final Four weekend as part of the same March Madness Music Festival. On the women’s side they’re presenting two in-person events at the Final Four, the Super Saturday Concert and Beyond the Baseline.
Coca-Cola
The third and final major partner is Coca-Cola, who again benefit from advertising, this year hosting a “Fight Song Face Off” sweepstakes where the winner wins a trip to the 2026 Final Four. Coca-Cola’s partnership also includes Powerade as the official sports drink of the NCAA. With coolers and water bottles, sports drinks notoriously earn tons of exposure from shots of the sideline and huddles.
NCAA Corporate Partners
Buick
While NCAA partners are involved in both tournaments, Buick has shown particular commitment to changing the inequity in men’s and women’s sports coverage, for a third consecutive year showcasing the “See Her Greatness” campaign as part of their NCAA partnership.
Nissan
Nissan’s bringing back their “Road 2” campaign, complete with traditional TV advertising, digital activations with Bleacher Report, and more.
Reese’s
The beloved candy brand is sponsoring the men’s Final Four Friday, a chance for fans to watch Final Four teams’ open practices and the NABC All-Star Game.
Great Clips
As the official hair salon of March Madness, this year Great Clips has partnered with Mikey Day with a campaign where you can show Day’s Clip Notes to a Great Clips stylist to get the same cut as Day.
Buffalo Wild Wings
This year for March Madness, Buffalo Wild Wings is activating its participation in the tournament with “Overtime Wingtime.” If any March Madness game goes to overtime, you can place an order or check-in to a sports bar to receive six free boneless wings on your next trip to Buffalo Wild Wings.
Wendy’s
For this year’s tournament, Wendy’s is “serving up the real MVP of March Madness” and offering $1 Jr. Bacon Cheeseburgers or a $1 Double Stack with additional purchase when ordering in the Wendy’s app. These types of activations get existing customers into the app and get new customers to download the app, proving a big win for brands.
Apparel and gear
Wilson Sporting Good’s
The NCAA’s exclusive partnership with Wilson as the basketball for both tournaments means tons of logo exposure via telecasts and social media.Apparel: Nike, Jordan, Under Armour, and Adidas
Beyond NCAA partners, the biggest winners are the apparel companies who struck deals with the various schools who make the tournaments. Adidas, Nike, Under Armour and Jordan are well-represented brands throughout the tournaments, appearing on jerseys and gear of participating teams.For a list of all official NCAA Corporate Champions and Partners, visit the official NCAA website.
Last updated: March 17, 2025
