ESPN’s Dick Vitale blasts NCAA for college basketball tournament expansion

The NCAA formally announced May 7 it would expand the men’s college basketball field from 68 to 76 teams beginning in 2027.

Dick Vitale is not a fan.

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ESPN’s longest-tenured television personality, the voice of its college basketball coverage since 1979, blasted college basketball leadership for what is ostensibly a money grab.

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“Yes it sickens me that they water down the tournament by expanding – more teams that are MEDIOCRE at best will. Be added – the real chaos of college hoops instability – no controls of NIL are just left alone – is that leadership ?” Vitale wrote on his X account.

Earlier in the day, Sports Business Journal reported the NCAA will be receiving an additional $50 million each season in media after the men’s and women’s tournament expands. TNT Sports and CBS Sports, which sell sponsorships for both events, will also see the opening of additional categories to grow their own revenue from the event according to SBJ.

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ESPN does not hold the rights to the men’s “March Madness” games, but it does have an agreement with the NCAA covering the women’s basketball tournament, plus international rights to the men’s tournament.

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Vitale is not alone in his criticism of the tournament expansion, which has been rumored for months. But it does stand in contrast to the more measured tone of the ESPN.com article he linked to on X.

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Writes Joe Lunardi: “the first thing you notice about a 76-team bracket is how much it looks like a 64- or 68-team bracket. Sure, a few seed lines are a little crowded, but the guts of the thing — and the essence of the NCAA tournament itself — are unchanged

The expanded 76-team format begins with the 2027 Division I men’s (March 16) and women’s (March 17) basketball tournaments. The…

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Publish date : 2026-05-07 23:30:00

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