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March Madness Expected to Top Super Bowl in Total Wagers

Flores Brian

Updated as of March 15, 2023 at 1:51 PM EDT • Read time: 2 minutes and 46 seconds. Check out the latest updates on Twitter and Google News.

A detailed view of the March Madness logo as we look at the top March Madness betting trends.
A detailed view of the March Madness logo during a game between the Texas Southern Tigers and the Texas A&M-CC Islanders in the First Four game of the 2022 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at UD Arena on March 15, 2022 in Dayton, Ohio. Photo by Emilee Chinn/Getty Images via AFP.

Which major sporting event will attract the highest number of bets this year: the Big Game or the Big Dance?

According to recent research conducted by the American Gaming Association (AGA), the NCAA men’s basketball tournament, commonly referred to as March Madness, is projected to be a top contender. The survey found that 68 million American adults are planning to bet a total of $15.5 billion on March Madness.

The AGA projects that the total number of bettors will exceed the 50 million people expected to wager on the Super Bowl. However, the projected handle for March Madness is approximately half a billion dollars less than the Super Bowl projection. Additionally, the results show that 31 million American adults are planning to place a traditional sports wager either at retail or online sports betting sites or with a bookie, while 21.5 million intend to bet casually with friends.

The numbers have exceeded the AGA’s expectations for the 2022 March Madness edition, where 45 million adults were anticipated to bet $3.1 billion on the games. For 2023, the AGA is predicting a more than 50% increase in the number of adults betting on the college basketball tournament compared to 2022, along with a 400% year-over-year surge in the amount of money wagered on the event.

The growth of the AGA is attributed to the increasing popularity of legal online betting in the US and a resurgence of bracket contests, according to President & CEO Bill Miller. A majority of online bettors are expected to participate in March Madness for the first time, with 56.3 million planning to join a bracket contest.

Miller emphasized the importance of fans practicing responsible gaming when placing bets on NCAA Tournament games, regardless of the amount of money being wagered.

Miller emphasized the importance of responsible betting during March Madness, reminding everyone to set a budget, understand the odds, keep it social, and only participate in legal gambling activities.

U.S. sports betting industry has expanded

As of now, 33 states and Washington, DC have legalized sports betting, with three more markets set to launch soon. A total of 146 million American adults, or 57% of the population, reside in areas where sports betting is legal and regulated.

Newcomers have joined the market since last year’s March Madness, with Maryland launching online sports betting in November. There are now eight mobile sportsbook providers in the state, accounting for over 95% of the total wagering handle.

The Ohio sports betting market began on Jan. 1 with a strong start, reaching a $1.1 billion handle in its first full month. Massachusetts also recently entered the sports betting market, launching online sports betting on March 10 following the opening of its retail marketplace on Jan. 31.

The MA online sports betting market is poised for significant early success as it launched just in time for March Madness. Some experts predict that mobile users alone could wager over $60 million in this market.

According to data from GeoComply, a Vancouver company that assists online sportsbooks in locating customers, over 400,000 player accounts in Massachusetts recorded more than eight million geolocation transactions during the first weekend of online sports betting. This surpassed the activity seen in the Virginia and Arizona sports betting markets.

Who are the betting favorites?

The AGA survey revealed the top betting favorites for this year’s tournament, though the survey was conducted prior to Selection Sunday unveiling the NCAA Tournament bracket. The Kentucky Wildcats, a six seed in the East Region, were the top choice to win the national championship, receiving 9% of the votes from respondents.

Texas A&M was chosen by 8% of participants, while Gonzaga, UCLA, and Alabama were each selected by 6% of participants.

Houston Cougars, led by Kelvin Sampson, are the favorites to win on FanDuel with odds of +500. Other top contenders for the national title include Alabama (+800), Kansas (+1000), and Purdue (+1200). The real winners of the tournament will be the top sports betting apps in the nation, gearing up for a historic March of wagering, no matter which team emerges victorious.

Written By:
Flores Brian
Grant is a former junior B ice hockey player, and a current believer that the Washington Capitals’ aging core still has another Cup run left in the tank. Grant’s owned and operated his own marketing agency since shortly after graduating from Virginia Tech in 2014. He pursued the profession because he figured it’d be a great way to get paid to do something he loves to do, write. After years of hammering puck lines and leading his fantasy football league as Commissioner, Grant started writing about sports betting and the casino gaming industry in 2021 and hasn’t looked back.